When micrometeoroids impact the surface of the Moon, most of the material in the crater is vaporized. Most of that water is released into space. This discovery indicates that water may be distributed across the lunar surface, and not limited to cold, shadowed places. The M oon has a very thin and weak atmosphere, called an exosphere.
It does not provide any protection from the Sun's radiation or impacts from meteoroids. The early Moon may have developed an internal dynamo, the mechanism for generating global magnetic fields for terrestrial planets, but today, the Moon has a very weak magnetic field. The magnetic field here on Earth is many thousands of times stronger than the Moon's magnetic field.
The many missions that have explored the Moon have found no evidence to suggest it has its own living things. However, the Moon could be the site of future colonization by humans. The discovery that the Moon harbors water ice, and that the highest concentrations occur within darkened craters at the poles, makes the Moon a little more hospitable for future human colonists. Earth's Moon. Introduction The brightest and largest object in our night sky, the Moon makes Earth a more livable planet by moderating our home planet's wobble on its axis, leading to a relatively stable climate.
The Latest. Full Moon Guide: November - December A 3D model of Earth's Moon. The next full Moon is the Beaver Moon, and there will be a near-total lunar eclipse. NASA has selected a new Earth science mission that will study the behavior of tropical storms and thunderstorms.
Working together, two instruments could open the door for a more efficient, cost-effective way to gather key information for weather forecasting. This page showcases our resources for those interested in learning more about ocean worlds. Ocean Worlds Resources. Use Chemistry. The Antarctic ozone hole reached its maximum area on Oct. NASA is looking into whether mixed reality technology could help with repairs and upgrades on the Cold Atom Lab aboard the space station.
A vivid aurora is seen over Earth from the International Space Station. Behold an Aurora Over the Southern Skies. JPL's lucky peanuts are an unofficial tradition at big mission events. Full Moon Guide: October - November Satellites are producing a deluge of data, so engineers and scientists are setting up systems in the cloud to manage it. The solar system is roughly 4. New studies in gave further weight to this theory, based on simulations of planetary orbits in the early solar system, as well as newly uncovered differences in the abundance of the element tungsten detected in the Earth and the moon.
Although the large impact theory dominates the scientific community's discussion, there are several other ideas for the moon's formation. These include that the Earth captured the moon, that the moon fissioned out of the Earth, or that Earth may even have stolen the moon from Venus , according to a recent theory.
It likely consists mostly of iron, but may also contain large amounts of sulfur and other elements. The moon's rocky mantle is about miles 1, km thick and made up of dense rocks rich in iron and magnesium. Magma in the mantle made its way to the surface in the past and erupted volcanically for more than a billion years — from at least four billion years ago to fewer than three billion years ago. The crust that includes the lunar surface averages some 42 miles 70 km deep. The outermost part of the crust is broken and jumbled due to all the large impacts the moon has endured , with the shattered zone giving way to intact material below a depth of about 6 miles 9.
Like the four inner planets , the moon is rocky. It's pockmarked with craters formed by asteroid impacts millions of years ago, and because there is no weather, the craters have not eroded. Photos : Our changing moon. Orbiters have found traces of water on the lunar surface that may have originated from deep underground.
They have also located hundreds of pits that could house explorers who remain on the moon long-term. Ongoing observations from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter LRO showed that water is more abundant on slopes facing the lunar south pole , although scientists do caution that the water quantity is comparable to an extremely dry desert. Meanwhile, a study suggested the moon's interior could be abundant in water , too. The moon has only a very thin atmosphere , so a layer of dust — or a footprint — can sit undisturbed for centuries.
And without much of an atmosphere, heat is not held near the surface, so temperatures vary wildly. Daytime temperatures on the sunny side of the moon reach degrees F Celsius ; on the night side it gets as cold as minus F minus C.
Here are some statistics from NASA :. The moon's gravity pulls at the Earth, causing predictable rises and falls in sea levels known as tides. To a much smaller extent, tides also occur in lakes, the atmosphere and within Earth's crust.
High tides refer to water bulging up from Earth's surface, and low tides when water levels drop. High tide occur on the side of the Earth nearest the moon due to gravity, and on the side farthest from the moon due to the inertia of water.
Low tides occur between these two humps. The pull of the moon is also slowing the Earth's rotation , an effect known as tidal braking, which increases the length of our day by 2. A full moon , captured in by a crew member of the International Space Station , appears to be rolling along atop Earth's deep-blue stratosphere. Every Known as synchronous rotation, this celestial dance means that the same lunar face always peers down at us.
Viewed from Earth, the amount of the moon illuminated by the sun appears to wax and wane, creating the familiar cycle from new moon to crescent to full. Read about the phases of the moon and which month hosts a Sturgeon moon.
Early in its history, vast oceans of magma blanketed the moon, and as that magma slowly cooled and crystallized, the less dense minerals floated to the surface. Much of this ancient lunar crust is made up of the light-colored rock anorthosite, which we see from Earth as the bright sections of the moon. After billions of years, however, that dazzling surface is now rife with dark tracks, speckles, and splotches. Many of these dark zones are vast swaths of lunar basalts, similar to the rocks that make up the Hawaiian islands.
Known as maria, which is Latin for seas, these zones were formed when ancient volcanic eruptions of molten rock flooded to the surface. Some of the small wending dark tracks are also faults, or deep cracks in the surface. While much of this activity happened long ago, a recent look at Apollo-era earthquakes suggests that not all is relegated to the past, hinting that Luna may not be not geologically dead as some once thought. One of the most quintessential features of the moon is the array of overlapping craters punched into its surface.
Models and some recent finds suggest the upper zones of the mantle are composed of the minerals pyroxene and olivine. Once thought to be a parched landscape, scientists have found an increasing number of signs that the moon is wetter than we once thought. Such reservoirs would provide a valuable resource for hydration and fuel for future human visitors, or even for long-term residents of proposed lunar bases that could serve as a jumping-off point for exploration deeper into space.
As the Earth rotates, the part of Earth affected by the lunar pull shifts, creating a high tide about every 12 hours at any given spot.
The moon also dampens the amount that Earth teeters on its axis, helping to keep our climate more stable. So the tidal bulge that rises on the side of Earth nearest the moon spins just ahead of the orb.
This drags the moon along, slightly speeding up its orbit and inching it away. So our little glowing buddy will continue to loop around Earth as we continue our annual venture around the sun for millennia to come.
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