<p>The <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atmosphere_of_the_Moon" rel="nofollow noreferrer">moon's &quot;atmosphere&quot;</a> isn't much of an atmosphere, and is sometimes called an <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exosphere" rel="nofollow noreferrer">exosphere</a>.  The particle density in the moon's atmosphere is low enough to be considered a very good vacuum for Earth experiments.</p>
<p>The discovery is mentioned in <a href="http://phys.org/news/2015-08-ladee-spacecraft-neon-lunar-atmosphere.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer">this article on phys.org</a>, which specifically says</p>
<blockquote>
<p>There's not enough neon to make the moon visibly glow because the moon's atmosphere is extremely tenuous, about 100 trillion times less dense than Earth's atmosphere at sea level.</p>
<p>...</p>
<p>The behavior of a dense atmosphere is driven by collisions between its atoms and molecules. However, the moon's atmosphere is technically referred to as an exosphere because it's so thin, its atoms rarely collide.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>As far as the question &quot;what's the importance&quot; in your title, it seems mainly to be a confirmation of something that has been predicted for a while, as well as providing more data concerning exospheres: the most common type of &quot;atmosphere&quot; in the solar system.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-08-17T22:20:48.137Z
2015-08-17T22:20:48.137Z
2020-06-17T09:47:40.653Z
zibadawa timmy
<p>Now that NASA's LADEE spacecraft has confirmed the presence of Neon in the moon's atmosphere could the official explanation of the moon's light end up being change from reflecting the sun's light to some sort of electromagnetic interaction with the neon caused by solar winds, or something like that?</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-08-18T12:31:19.227Z
I've never seen a moon this particular shade of red: http://www.neoncircus.com/images/hire_catalogue/full/hotel_neon_sign_263-F11-A.jpg
Wayfaring Stranger
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-08-18T16:13:15.733Z
@WayfaringStranger your point being?
developerwjk
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-08-18T20:42:45.913Z
"Electromagnetic interaction" with neon would likely produce ionized neon, which is the red color you see in the sign, but not when looking at the moon.
Wayfaring Stranger
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-08-19T16:12:30.133Z
@WayfaringStranger What about a blood moon?
developerwjk
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-08-19T16:35:43.980Z
Some lunar eclipses are redder than others due to increased scattering of light through earth's atmosphere when it's extra humid or dusty. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lunar_eclipse#Blood_moon I've seen them orange, I've seen them dark red, never any that looked like neon; except for the Photoshopped images on the internet.
Wayfaring Stranger
<the-moon><moon-phases>
What's the significance of finding neon on lunar atmospehere? new explanation of moon light?
developerwjk
# What's the significance of finding neon on lunar atmospehere? new explanation of moon light?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2015-08-17)

Now that NASA's LADEE spacecraft has confirmed the presence of Neon in the moon's atmosphere could the official explanation of the moon's light end up being change from reflecting the sun's light to some sort of electromagnetic interaction with the neon caused by solar winds, or something like that?

**Tags:** the-moon, moon-phases

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: I've never seen a moon this particular shade of red: http://www.neoncircus.com/images/hire_catalogue/full/hotel_neon_sign_263-F11-A.jpg  
> **username_0**: @WayfaringStranger your point being?  
> **username_1**: "Electromagnetic interaction" with neon would likely produce ionized neon, which is the red color you see in the sign, but not when looking at the moon.  
> **username_0**: @WayfaringStranger What about a blood moon?  
> **username_1**: Some lunar eclipses are redder than others due to increased scattering of light through earth's atmosphere when it's extra humid or dusty. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lunar_eclipse#Blood_moon I've seen them orange, I've seen them dark red, never any that looked like neon; except for the Photoshopped images on the internet.  

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## 1 answers

### Answer by username_2 on 2015-08-17. Score: 1

The [moon's "atmosphere"](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atmosphere_of_the_Moon) isn't much of an atmosphere, and is sometimes called an [exosphere](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exosphere). The particle density in the moon's atmosphere is low enough to be considered a very good vacuum for Earth experiments.

The discovery is mentioned in [this article on phys.org](http://phys.org/news/2015-08-ladee-spacecraft-neon-lunar-atmosphere.html), which specifically says

> There's not enough neon to make the moon visibly glow because the moon's atmosphere is extremely tenuous, about 100 trillion times less dense than Earth's atmosphere at sea level.
>
> ...
>
> The behavior of a dense atmosphere is driven by collisions between its atoms and molecules. However, the moon's atmosphere is technically referred to as an exosphere because it's so thin, its atoms rarely collide.

As far as the question "what's the importance" in your title, it seems mainly to be a confirmation of something that has been predicted for a while, as well as providing more data concerning exospheres: the most common type of "atmosphere" in the solar system.


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