Related papers: Composition, Structure and Origin of the Moon
Venus' mass and radius are similar to those of Earth. However, dissimilarities in atmospheric properties, geophysical activity and magnetic field generation could hint towards significant differences in the chemical composition and interior…
The origin of Mercury still remains poorly understood compared to the other rocky planets of the Solar System. One of the most relevant constraints that any formation model has to fulfill refers to its internal structure, with a predominant…
In the canonical model of Moon formation, a Mars-sized protoplanet "Theia" collides with proto-Earth at close to their mutual escape velocity $v_{\rm esc}$ and a common impact angle 45{\deg}. The "graze-and-merge" collision strands a…
Constraints on the interior of the Moon have been derived from its inductive response, principally as measured by the magnetic transfer function (TF) between the distantly orbiting Explorer 35 satellite and the Apollo 12 surface station.…
Among the elements exhibiting non-mass dependent isotopic variations in meteorites, chromium (Cr) has been central in arguing for an isotopic homogeneity between the Earth and the Moon. However, the 54Cr isotope composition of the Moon…
Parameterised by the Love number $k_2$ and the tidal quality factor $Q$, and inferred from lunar laser ranging (LLR), tidal dissipation in the Moon follows an unexpected frequency dependence often interpreted as evidence for a highly…
Major elements such as Fe, Ti, Mg, Al, Ca, and Si play very important roles in understanding the origin and evolution of the Moon. Previous maps of these major elements derived from orbital data are based on mosaic images or low-resolution…
Lunar impact glasses, quenched melts produced during cratering events on the Moon, have the potential to provide not only compositional information about both the local and regional geology of the Moon but also information about the impact…
The Earth's Moon is thought to have formed by an impact between the Earth and an impactor around 4.5 billion years ago. This impact could have been so energetic that it could have mixed and homogenized the Earth's mantle. However, this view…
According to the standard giant impact hypothesis, the Moon formed from a partially vaporized disk generated by a collision between the proto Earth and a Mars sized impactor. The initial structure of the disk significantly affects the Moon…
According to the generally accepted scenario, the last giant impact on the Earth formed the Moon and initiated the final phase of core formation by melting the Earth's mantle. A key goal of geochemistry is to date this event, but different…
In the leading theory of lunar formation, known as the giant impact hypothesis, a collision between two planet-size objects resulted in a young Earth surrounded by a circumplanetary debris disk from which the Moon later accreted. The range…
The lunar crater record features $\sim 50$ basins. The radiometric dating of Apollo samples indicates that the Imbrium basin formed relatively late -- from the planet formation perspective -- some $\simeq 3.9$ Ga. Here we develop a…
Lunar rocks are severely depleted in moderately volatile elements such as Rb, K, and Zn relative to Earth. Identifying the cause of this depletion is important for understanding how the Earth-Moon system evolved in the aftermath of the…
The multiple impact hypothesis proposes that the Moon formed through a series of smaller collisions, rather than a single giant impact. This study advances our understanding of this hypothesis, as well as moon collisions in other contexts,…
It has been assumed that hydrogen is negligibly incorporated into core-forming metals below $\sim$3 GPa, and therefore the presence of hydrogen in iron cores of small terrestrial bodies including the moon has not been considered. Here we…
Earth and Moon are shown here to be composed of oxygen isotope reservoirs that are indistinguishable, with a difference in {\Delta}"17O of -1 +/- 5ppm (2se). Based on these data and our new planet formation simulations that include a…
Composition of terrestrial planets records planetary accretion, core-mantle and crust-mantle differentiation, and surface processes. Here we compare the compositional models of Earth and Mars to reveal their characteristics and formation…
The current standard theory of the origin of the Moon is that the Earth was hit by a giant impactor the size of Mars causing ejection of iron poor impactor mantle debris that coalesced to form the Moon. But where did this Mars-sized…
The Moon is known to have a small liquid core, and it is thought that in the distant past the core may have produced strong magnetic fields recorded in lunar samples. Here we implement a numerical model of lunar orbital and rotational…