Roberta Schwoyer, age 12, of Allentown, Pa., for her question;

Does the earth shine like the moon?

The hazy atmosphere of the earth bounces back far more of its Sunshine than does the cindery face of the moon. From out in space, it shines far more brightly than the golden moon. However, it shines only on the sunlit side, the half of the globe, which happens to be facing the sun.

Venus and Mercury are nearer to the sun than we are. From these planets we would see the sunlit side of the earth at all times, and our globe always would glow as a golden orb. From Mars and the other planets farther from the sun, we would see the day lit side come and go like the phases of our moon.