One of the questions associated with issues of astronomy and formation of the solar system is how the moon was created Much is said about our satellite, whether a hidden face, whether craters, etc. But many people do not know how the Moon was created and what origin it had. There are many studies regarding this since it is a question that has intrigued the scientific community for a long time.
In this article we are going to tell you how the Moon was created, what is the most correct hypothesis and some of its lesser-known characteristics.
Hypothesis of how the Moon was created
The Moon's large size, low density, and other geological features suggest that our moon was born from an explosion of debris from a Mars-sized protoplanet called Thea that collided with Earth. However, if true, the object's impact on the relatively solid Earth would have produced a Moon composed primarily of Tea material, instead of Earth.
New research led by scientists at the Japan Agency for Earth and Sea Science and Technology suggests that such collisions may have originated on an early Earth whose surface was still covered in magma.
The Moon has held a prominent place in the collective imagination since ancient times. Ancient cultures witnessed the incarnations of different gods on the moons, while lunar cycles were associated with periods of creation, destruction, and fertility, laying the foundation for future calendars that have allocated time since ancient times.
However, the earth's satellites are not just references to myths and legends. Thanks to lunar exploration, the scientific community has been able to discover a rich geological world with a composition similar to that of our planet, a fact that has given rise to a generally accepted hypothesis known as the “big impact theory”. The moon originated about 4600 billion years ago, shortly after the formation of the Earth, as a result of our planet colliding with a Mars-sized object called Tea.
Origin of the Moon
The collision ejected a mass of debris into space that began to orbit our planet and then concentrated into a molten mass that, over millions of years, eventually solidified to form the moons we know today. That's the hypothesis considered by a team of researchers led by Natsuki Hosono of Japan's Agency for Earth and Ocean Science and Technology, in a study recently published in Nature Geoscience. At that moment, the proto-Earth was surrounded by a layer of molten silicate, that it could have released material that, once in orbit, could have solidified to form a celestial body with a geological structure similar to our planet.
Using a standard simulation of a collision between two celestial bodies, the parameters are adjusted to replicate the changes in the density of the objects. Specifically, as Dr. Natsuki Hosono explained to National Geographic Spain, they used a technique called smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) and modified it to allow it to detect changes in the density of Earth's primordial magma ocean. Taking these modifications into account, they deduce that the igneous rock material eventually fused with the young Earth to form a moon whose composition was approximately 70% the same material as our planet, a percentage much higher than that obtained by other planets. Measurements are based on a Solid Earth model with 40% coincidence.
"Our geochemical studies tell us that the Moon probably formed very early on Earth," Natsuki said, cautioning that while the standard assumptions proposed so far have failed, alternatives, such as the one proposed in their study, the paradox is unlikely. . "The moon is very lucky," said the scientist.
How did the igneous material accumulate to form the Moon?
In this case, the phenomenon is known as "coalescence," where debris thrown into orbit by an explosion coalesces, gradually coming together to form a planetary body. «Accretion (which gives rise to the formation of the Moon) occurs in a similar way to the 'primary' formation of planetesimals and moons from planetesimals, but in this case we can classify it as a secondary process because the Moon is condensed by the Earth.
Jesús Martínez Frías, scientific researcher at the Institute for Scientific Research (IGEO) (CSIC-UCM) and emeritus professor at UC3M, who did not participate in the study, said that Natsuki clarified: "According to the new model, the debris disk will end up solidifying , producing an unknown number of small objects (about 10 kilometers in diameter) that would accumulate to form our moons.
The composition of the Moon, a new study that could lead to new knowledge about our planet. "There must have been an important exchange between the two planetary bodies that led to the appearance of geological and geochemical changes on Earth," says Martínez Frías, who assures that this latest study is the best way to bring us what we know so far and a model Coherence can help us understand how and what the planets and moons are made of.
Little-known curiosities of the moon
The Moon has curiosities that not many people know about. These are some of them:
- Mole X and V: During certain moments of the lunation, it is possible to observe formations on the lunar surface that create the illusion of the letters "X" or "V". These features are the result of the interaction between sunlight and the rims of craters, mountains, and valleys.
- Lunar Maria: The dark lunar maria, known as "maria" in Latin (singular: "mare"), are actually vast plains of solidified basalt formed by ancient volcanic eruptions. Despite their smooth, dark appearance, these areas contain no water.
- quivering moon: Although the Moon appears to be a quiet place, there has been evidence of seismic activity. Seismometers left behind by the Apollo missions recorded "moonquakes," tremors caused by thermal contraction of the lunar interior as the Moon cools.
- Crescent of the Moon: Although the Moon is not "growing" in the traditional sense, the gravitational interaction between the Earth and the Moon is causing the Moon to recede from us at a rate of about 3.8 inches per year. This is due to the transfer of energy from Earth's rotation to the lunar orbit.
I hope that with this information you can learn more about how the Moon was created and some of its curiosities.