2 September

1908: On 2 September 1908, Nikolay Aleksandrovich Kozyrev was born.

Kozyrev was a Russian astronomer who claimed to have discovered volcano-like activity on the Moon. His sightings of apparent gaseous emissions from the lunar surface challenged the long-held theory that the Moon was an inert celestial body. For years, amateur astronomers have reported seeing strange colours on the Moon, especially in the Alphonsus and Aristarchus regions. These types of observations gained credibility when on 13 November 1958, Kozyrev saw a brightening at the central peak in the crater Alphonsus. He photographed its spectrum, which showed carbon-vapour emissions.

Most lunar scientists do not accept that the Moon is active in this way.