Temperatures near the Moon's equator can spike to 250°F (121°C) in daylight, then plummet after nightfall to -208°F (-133°C). In deep craters near the Moon's poles, permanent shadows keep the surface even colder — NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter has measured temperatures lower than -410°F (-246°C).

Purple cold, blue cold, bruised-apricot cold.

The kind of cold that nibbles on your ears,

the kind of cold that refreshes you like an ice [ ] glass of lemonade

––that kind of cold.

The kind of cold that when you sit it ribbons up your spine,

seeps like a venom into your thighs.

The kind of cold when you see others grasping hands in the shriek of a blizzard.

Eyes closed, breath steaming on the window,

the heater's beating like a hare in winter blue.

The kind of cold that wakes you and licks your eyes until they're sore and all you can do

is sit there in your store of ratty coats and tremble on avenues

(even if you can't anymore).