Since the Moon is moving away from the Earth...?

Question

Since the Moon is moving away from the Earth, what would happen to our planet when it's so far that it's only a dot in the sky @ night?

Answer 1

There would no longer be high and low tides.

Answer 2

This scenario is unlikely. The current rate of seperation is about 1 inch per year. Seperation is most likely due to the forces acted upon it since it's creation from the Giant Impact. One could expect it's rate of seperation to decrease as it reaches a stabilized rotation point around the barycenter.

It is a process involving the conservation of angular momentum interacting with tidal coupling and gravitational locking. The same reason that Earth's rotation is gradually slowing. This is a process occuring over billions of years. One could conclude that the Moon will never become a faint dot in the sky.

In the hypothetical question. The answer is nothing would happen. Planets can and do exist without moons.

Answer 3

First, nothing bad will happen to the moon or Earth as the moon moves away. Second, the moon will stop moving away when Earth is tidally locked to the moon. Earth's rotation is already slowed to 24 hours from the 10 hours it was when Earth was born. Eventually, the rotation will slow to the moons orbital speed and then the moon will stop taking energy from Earth's rotation. The energy that pushes the moon away comes from our tides. Once the moon stays directly over the tidal bulge, our tides will cease to oscillate up and down.

Answer 4

Actually, it will only move away so far, and then hold it's position. The *reason* the moon is moving away is because Earth is slowing down in it's rotation. When Earth's rotation equals the period of the Lunar orbit, the moon will stop moving away.

Answer 5

It's moving away very slowly. The Sun will turn into a red giant before we see much difference.

Answer 6

It will stop moving away before it gets that far away.