A new study conducted on recently brought samples from the distant side of the Moon offers important clues about the formation of our natural satellite.
A new study provides important clues about our natural satellite formation Photo: Shutterstock
A new study by Chinese researchers reveals a significant difference in the distribution of water, supporting the theory that the Moon formed as a result of a huge impact between the Earth and another heavenly body.
Chinese researchers at the Academy of Sciences analyzed the samples collected by the Chang’E-6 mission in the South Pole-Aitken region and found that this area contains only 1 to 1.5 micrograms of water per rock, a much smaller amount than on the side of the Earth, according to Science Alert.
This difference strengthens the idea that the Moon has an uneven composition, and this could be a consequence of a major cosmic event. The main hypothesis claims that 4.5 billion years ago, an object of the size of the planet Mars, called Theia, collided with the Earth. The resulting residues formed the moon, and the part oriented towards our planet remained hotter and more volcanic for a long time.
What does these discoveries mean?
The difference between the two monthly hemispheres, one full of craters and relatively dry, the other dominated by the basaltic and more water fields, offers indications about the geological history of the moon and confirms the gigantic impact hypothesis.
“The abundance of water in the monthly mantle provides a perspective on the monthly formation models through a gigantic impact and plays a crucial role in the crystallization of the monthly magmatic ocean and in the magmatism and long-term volcanism”, Explains the authors of the study of Huicun HE and Linxi Li
In addition, the fact that the material brought from the Aitken basin has so little water could indicate that the impact that created this huge crater has moved large amounts of matter to the other side of the month, thus influencing the composition of the two hemispheres.
“The new data on the mantle in the distant part of the month Provides a landmark for estimating the abundance of water from the silicate mass of the Moon, offering critical constraints on the hypothesis of formation by a gigantic impact and a the subsequent evolution of Mondayandfor which the role of water is central“, States Chinese scientists.
Studies on new samples continue and could change how we understand the formation of natural satellites in general. It is certain that every gram of monthly dust brought to Earth helps us to rebuild the cosmic past of our neighbor in space.
