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Question
the moon takes about 29.53 days to rotate once on its axis and the same amount of time to revolve once around earth. because these two motions occur over the same period, the same side of the moon always faces earth. but what if this werent the case? what might happen if the moon did not rotate at all or if it rotated faster than it revolves around earth?
If the Moon did not rotate at all, different sides of the Moon would face Earth at different times as it revolved around Earth. If the Moon rotated faster than it revolved around Earth, we would also see different sides of the Moon over time. This is because the synchronization of rotation and revolution is what causes the same side of the Moon to always face Earth currently.
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If the Moon did not rotate at all, different lunar hemispheres would face Earth as it orbits. If it rotated faster than it revolves, we would also observe different lunar sides over time.