From the Earth to the Moon, Part 2, Chapter 18 summary

What happens

1. The travelers examine Tycho’s bright rays, and Barbicane favors an explanation based on contraction inside the cooling moon.
2. Barbicane argues that harsh conditions and the absence of movement or human traces rule out present lunar life.
3. The companions unanimously reject present habitability, and Barbicane records their decision with the date December 6.
4. Barbicane argues that an earlier atmosphere supports lunar life and moderates temperature, while different rotational conditions remain possible.
5. He attributes lunar extinction to cooling and atmospheric loss, and Michel feels relieved by the distant timescale proposed for earth’s cooling.
6. The companions unanimously accept past lunar habitation as the projectile recedes and the moon’s features disappear from view.

In this chapter

What to notice

Barbicane treats the absence of visible human traces as evidence against present habitation. The line marks the distinction between what the travelers observe and what they imagine about the past.

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