A recent study by the Smithsonian Institution and the University of Maryland suggests that the rugged terrain of the moon may still be active in areas of current interest for future missions.
The small ridge on the other side of the moon (yellow) reveals evidence that the moon may not be as dormant as before. Image Credit: Smithsonian facility, Tomwattors
For decades, scientists have been studying the moon’s surface to better understand its complex geological and evolutionary history.
Evidence from the moon’s Maria, the dark and flat areas filled with solid lava, suggests that the moon underwent significant compression in its distant past.
Researchers initially believed that a large ridge near the moon was formed by shrinkage billions of years ago, leading to the conclusion that the moon’s Maria had been dormant since then.
However, new research indicates that there may be more dynamic activity beneath the moon’s surface.
Jaclyn Clark and her colleagues, researchers at the University of Maryland, discovered that the small ridge on the other side of the moon is significantly younger than previously studied ridges.
“Many scientists had previously thought that most of the moon’s geological activity occurred over two to three billion years ago,” Clark stated. “But it appears that these structural features have been active within the past billion years and may still be active today.”
“These small ridges formed within the last 200 million years, a relatively recent timeframe in lunar terms,” she added.
Using advanced mapping and modeling techniques, researchers uncovered a previously unknown small ridge on the far side of the moon.
The ridge consists of 10-40 volcanic groups likely formed 3.2 to 3.6 billion years ago in narrow areas with fundamental weaknesses on the moon’s surface.
To determine the age of these small ridges, researchers employed a crater count method and found them to be younger than surrounding features.
“The more craters present, the older the surface,” Dr. Clark explained. “Based on the number of craters, we estimate that these features have been structurally active within the last 160 million years.”
Scientists noted that the structure of the distant ridge resembles that seen near the moon, suggesting they were formed by similar forces.
A few decades ago, NASA’s Apollo Mission detected shallow moonquakes. Recent findings suggest that these small ridges may be related to similar seismic activity.
“I hope that future moon missions will include tools like terrestrial penetration radar to better understand the subsurface structure of the moon,” Clark expressed. “Knowing that the moon is still geologically active is crucial for planning human missions and infrastructure development on the lunar surface.”
The team’s paper was published this month in the Planetary Science Journal.
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Ca Nypaver et al. 2025. Moon Distant Ridges and Antartica – Recent Structural Deformation of an Incongruous Basin. Planet. Sci. J 6, 16; DOI: 10.3847/PSJ/AD9EAA
Near-Earth asteroid 2024 PT5 is in an Earth-like orbit and remained very close to Earth for several months at the end of 2024.
2024 PT5 captured a brief flyby from September 29 to November 25, 2024. Image credit: University of Colorado.
2024 PT was first detected on August 7, 2024 by the NASA-funded Asteroid Terrestrial Last Alert System (ATLAS) telescope at the University of Hawaii in Sutherland, South Africa.
This asteroid poses no danger to Earth, but its orbit around the sun closely matches that of our planet.
The object, which is about 10 meters (33 feet) wide, appears to be composed of rock that broke off from the moon’s surface and was ejected into space after a major impact.
“There was a general idea that this asteroid might have come from the moon, but when we discovered that this asteroid is rich in silicate minerals, it became conclusive proof. The silicate minerals are not the kind found on asteroids, but rather the ones found in the moon’s rocks. Dr. Teddy Kaleta Astronomer at Lowell Observatory.
“It doesn’t seem to have been in space very long, perhaps only a few thousand years, because there was no cosmic weathering to cause its spectrum to turn red.”
Using observations from the Lowell Discovery Telescope and NASA’s Infrared Telescope Facility (IRTF) at Mauna Kea Observatory in Hawaii, Dr. Kaleta and his colleagues show that the spectrum of sunlight reflected from the surface of 2024 PT does not match its spectrum. showed. A known asteroid type. Instead, the reflected light more closely matched the moon’s rocks.
This discovery doubles the number of known asteroids thought to originate from the Moon.
“Asteroid 469219 Kamooarewa was discovered in 2016 in an Earth-like orbit around the sun, indicating that this asteroid may also have been ejected from the lunar surface after a major impact,” the astronomers said. said.
“As telescopes become more sensitive to smaller asteroids, more potential lunar boulders will be discovered, and scientists studying the moon as well as scientists studying rare asteroid populations will It creates exciting opportunities for everyone.”
“If a lunar asteroid could be directly related to a specific impact crater on the Moon, studying it could provide insight into the cratering process on the pockmarked lunar surface.”
“Also, material collected from deep on the moon’s surface in the form of asteroids passing close to Earth could be available to future scientists for study.”
“This is a story about the moon told by asteroid scientists,” Dr. Kaleta said.
“It’s an unusual situation where we go out to study asteroids and end up wandering into new territory in terms of the questions we can ask for PT5 in 2024.”
of findings On January 14, 2025, Astrophysics Journal Letter.
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Theodore Caleta others. 2025. On the origin of the near-Earth asteroid moon2024 PT5. APJL 979, L8; doi: 10.3847/2041-8213/ad9ea8
The commencement of the new year for lunar exploration is set to take place early Wednesday, as two robotic landers and a small rover are poised to embark on their journey to the moon.
A SpaceX rocket is scheduled for liftoff from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 1:11 a.m. ET, launching two separate unmanned missions to the lunar surface.
The first mission, developed by Texas-based company Firefly Aerospace, aims to land the Blue Ghost lander in an area of the moon known as Mare Crisium—a 340-mile-wide basin believed to be the result of an ancient asteroid impact.
The second mission, conducted by Japanese company ispace, consists of a lander named Resilience and a “micro probe” called Tenacious, targeting a landing site in an area called Mare Frigoris in the moon’s northern region.
This will be ispace’s second attempt to land a spacecraft on the moon, following a failed 2023 mission when the lander Hakuto crashed due to unexpected acceleration during descent.
A model of ispace Inc.’s lunar rover Tenacious at the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) Space Center in Tsukuba. Toru Hanai/Bloomberg, from Getty Images files
The ispace lander and rover are expected to take a longer and less energy-intensive path to the moon compared to Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost lander, with a 45-day journey time and an estimated arrival in four to five months.
Blue Ghost will transport 10 NASA scientific instruments to the moon and spend approximately two weeks collecting data on the lunar surface.
The mission is part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services Initiative, which involves NASA partnering with private companies to deliver scientific experiments, technology, and other cargo to the lunar surface.
These endeavors are within NASA’s broader Artemis program, which aims at the eventual return of humans to the moon.
Nicola Fox, associate administrator for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, mentioned that the Blue Ghost lander mission will provide crucial insights for forthcoming Artemis expeditions involving astronaut crews.
For instance, details about the moon’s landscape and topography, including the conditions at the moon’s south pole—the designated landing spot for the manned Artemis mission—might be unveiled.
“This is a strategically significant and productive site, and we anticipate future astronaut explorers using their expertise to gather scientifically intriguing samples and bring them back to Earth,” Fox stated at a press conference on Tuesday.
The scientific equipment carried by Blue Ghost includes tools for precise measurement of the Earth-Moon distance, lunar dust study, and collection and analysis of lunar soil samples using a jet of compressed gas.
“Each accomplishment along the way will yield valuable data for upcoming missions, benefiting the United States and keeping our international collaborators at the forefront of space exploration,” Fox added.
SpaceX did not disclose the amount paid by the companies for the joint trip to orbit.
The plan involves the release of the Blue Ghost lander approximately 1 hour and 5 minutes post liftoff, followed by the ispace lander and rover about 30 minutes later, as per NASA’s NASA science mission director Juliana Shaiman.
Artist’s impression of the Blue Ghost’s moon landing
firefly aerospace
In a sign of increased commercial activity on the moon, two private spacecraft aiming to land on the moon will be launched aboard a SpaceX rocket.
Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost lander and iSpace’s Resilience lander, both aboard the same Falcon 9 rocket, departed from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 6:11 a.m. on January 15. It is scheduled to launch at 1:11 a.m. Greenwich Mean Time (1:11 a.m. ET).
This launch will be iSpace’s second attempt to land on the moon. The company suffered its first failure in 2023 when its Hakuto-R spacecraft crashed into the moon’s surface. The Japanese company has since said it has upgraded Resilience’s hardware and software to avoid the mistakes that led to the crash.
Meanwhile, the American company Firefly Aerospace is making its first attempt. The company has a contract with NASA as part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program, which pays private companies to accomplish scientific goals.
Resilience will carry six payloads to the lunar surface, including an experiment to use microalgae to produce food on the moon, and a micro rover that will roam, analyze, and photograph the landing area. Blue Ghost will combine 10 civilian and public payloads, including a radiation-hardened computer, a drill to measure how heat flows across the moon’s surface, and a satellite receiver that will seek to establish a permanent link with the moon. We plan to take it to the moon. Earth’s GPS network.
Resilience Lunar Module is ready for launch
iSpace
Both missions reach Earth orbit relatively quickly, within minutes of liftoff, but it takes much longer to reach the Moon. After orbiting Earth for 25 days, Blue Ghost will start its engines and begin a four-day journey to the Moon, where it will orbit for 16 days. After this, it will descend autonomously and land on a plain called Mare Crisium, where it will take two weeks to complete its scientific objectives.
Resilience will take a more circuitous route, passing the moon a month after launch, gliding deep into space for several months, then turning around and making the journey back to the moon. Once in orbit, the spacecraft is expected to land on a plain called Mare Frigoris within four to five months of launch.
If the mission is successful, they will be the second and third commercial spacecraft to land on the moon. The first craft was Intuitive Machines’ Odysseus lander, which landed last year.
Blue Ghost and Resilience are the first of about a dozen spacecraft hoping to make contact with lunar soil this year, primarily by NASA’s CLPS, many of which will serve as future human lunar surface residents. It is designed to test and demonstrate the technology required for These include the second and third missions of Intuitive Machines. IM-2 will explore digging buried ice near the moon’s south pole for use in future missions, as well as deploying two rovers and a lunar satellite to communicate with Earth.
New research suggests the moon may be older than many scientists thought.
This study suggests that the moon rock samples taken during the Apollo missions date back to an event in which the moon's surface melted, rather than the moment the moon formed.
Therefore, the authors believe that the Moon formed about 4.51 billion years ago, which is more than 100 million years earlier than the generally accepted estimate.
The moon may be more than 100 million years older than some scientists previously thought, according to a new study.
The study was published on Wednesday. journal naturechallenges long-held ideasThe moon is thought to have formed about 4.35 billion years ago after an object the size of Mars crashed into the early Earth and created our natural satellite.
That timeline is based on analysis of lunar rock samples taken during NASA's Apollo mission. But new research shows that the moon formed much earlier, about 4.51 billion years ago, and then underwent a dramatic “remelting” phenomenon around the time other scientists thought the moon first formed. It suggests that you have experienced it.
According to the authors, the melting occurred because Earth's constant gravitational pull distorted the moon and made it extremely hot as it moved away from Earth. According to the study, this process altered the moon's surface and hid the moon's true age.
The study's lead author, Francis Nimmo, a professor in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences at the University of California, Santa Cruz, said the extreme heating caused the moon's surface to re-melt, effectively “resetting all the clocks” on the moon's rocks. 'There is a possibility.
“So moon rocks don't tell us when the moon formed, but they tell us when subsequent events that heated the moon occurred,” he says.
The scientific community has disagreed for decades about the exact age of the moon. Nimmo and his colleagues are not the first to offer older estimates. This new discovery adds to the growing consensus that there may be more to the moon's history than the Apollo samples revealed.
For example, planetary scientists have wondered how a massive collision occurred 4.35 billion years ago, when most large objects in the history of the solar system were thought to have already come together to form planets. I have had a hard time explaining why the moon was formed.
“Those who studied the Apollo samples had reasonable guesses about the moon's age, but those who modeled how the planets in our solar system formed are wondering why so much material still remains after 200 million years. “It was always difficult to explain why the solar system was still flying,” Nimmo said. “That's the way it is, and the two camps want different ages.”
The adjusted schedule by Nimmo's team may also help explain why.A mineral called zircon found on the moonIt was discovered in Apollo's moon rock and is estimated to be approximately 4.5 billion years old. The moon's zircons, like other minerals on the moon, were thought to have crystallized during the moon's extreme temperatures, but their much older age has long puzzled scientists. .
In a new study, Nimmo and his colleagues suggest that the moon's overheating is the product of a process known as “tidal heating.”
“There are certain spots where the moon's orbit can be temporarily thrown off as it gets pushed aside,” Nimmo said. “During that time, the moon can be squeezed and stretched by Earth's gravity, which causes it to heat up.”
Similar tidal heating is thought to occur between Jupiter and its moons. a 2020 survey Researchers have discovered that the gas giant's gravity can stretch and squeeze some of its icy moons to the point where they heat up their interiors and melt rocks into magma. It is believed that this also applies to Jupiter's moon Io.
Recent and upcoming lunar missions could provide better insight into the moon's evolutionary history, Nimmo said. This includes China's Chang'e 6 mission, which collected samples from…
“The evolution of the solar system was very rapid. In just tens of millions of years, all the objects we know today were formed,” Munker said. “That's why we need very good temporal resolution for these very early events and why it's important to understand how the Earth-Moon system formed.”
Juno and Galileo’s volcanic activity on Io, Jupiter’s innermost Galilean moon and the most volcanically active object in the solar system, is unlikely to originate from a global magma ocean just below the surface. Deep space networks and astronomical observations, according to new analysis of Doppler data.
The internal structure of Io revealed by this research. Image credit: Sofia Shen / NASA / JPL / Caltech.
Slightly larger than Earth’s moon, Io is the most volcanically active object in the solar system.
It is the innermost of Jupiter’s Galilean moons, which in addition to Io includes Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto.
Trapped in a gravitational tug of war between Jupiter, Europa, and Ganymede, Io is constantly squeezed, causing frictional heat to build up within its interior, which is thought to be the cause of sustained and widespread volcanic activity.
Volcanic activity on the Moon was first discovered in 1979. That’s when Linda Morabito, an engineer on NASA’s Voyager program, spotted an eruption plume in one of the images taken by the spacecraft during its famous Grand Tour of the outer planets.
Since then, countless observations have been made from both space telescopes and telescopes on Earth documenting Io’s restless nature.
“Io is Galileo’s innermost moon, orbiting Jupiter every 42.5 hours,” said Juno collaborator Dr. Ryan Park of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory and colleagues.
“It has an average diameter of 3,643 km and a bulk density of 3,528 kg/m.3 As such, it is approximately 5% larger than the Moon, both in diameter and density.”
“Io’s eccentric orbit changes its distance from Jupiter by about 3,500 km, which leads to fluctuations in Jupiter’s gravitational pull.”
“Similar to the Moon’s tides caused by Earth, these gravitational fluctuations cause tidal deformations on Io, which are theorized to serve as the main energy source for the intense volcanism and infrared radiation observed on Io’s surface.”
The amount of tidal energy could be enough to cause Io’s interior to melt, potentially forming a magma ocean underground, but this theory is controversial.
Measuring the extent of Io’s tidal deformation could help determine whether the shallow magma ocean theory is plausible.
“Since the discovery of Morabito, planetary scientists have wondered how volcanoes were fed by lava beneath the Earth’s surface,” said Scott Bolton, Ph.D., principal investigator at Juno and a researcher at the Southwest Research Institute.
“Was there a shallow ocean of white-hot magma that fueled the volcano, or was the source more local?”
“We knew data from Juno’s two very close approaches could give us insight into how this beleaguered satellite actually works.”
Io’s arctic region was captured by NASA’s Juno on December 30, 2023, during the spacecraft’s 57th approach to the gas giant. Image credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / SwRI / MSSS / Gerald Eichstädt.
NASA’s Juno spacecraft flew very close to Io in December 2023 and February 2024, coming within about 1,500 km of the surface.
During its approach, Juno communicated with NASA’s Deep Space Network and acquired high-precision dual-frequency Doppler data. This data was used to measure Io’s gravity by tracking how it affects the spacecraft’s acceleration.
Combining these observations with archival Doppler data from NASA’s Galileo mission and ground-based telescopes, the researchers calculated how much Io is deformed by tidal forces.
This result is inconsistent with what would be expected if a shallow global magma ocean existed, suggesting that Io has a nearly solid mantle.
It is not yet known whether there are regions of magma deep within the moon.
The findings show that tidal forces do not necessarily create global magma oceans, which could have implications for our understanding of other moons such as Enceladus and Europa.
“Juno’s discovery that tidal forces don’t always produce global magma oceans not only prompts us to rethink what we know about Io’s interior,” Dr. Park said.
“It has implications for our understanding of other moons such as Enceladus and Europa, as well as exoplanets and super-Earths.”
“Our new findings provide an opportunity to rethink what we know about planet formation and evolution.”
The team’s paper published in this week’s magazine nature.
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RS Park others. Due to Io’s tidal reactions, shallow magma oceans do not form. nature published online on December 12, 2024. doi: 10.1038/s41586-024-08442-5
Some of the icy moons in the Jupiter and Saturn systems appear to have oceans of liquid water inside them. Although our knowledge of Uranus' moons is more limited, future tours of the Uranian system may be able to detect subsurface oceans. To plan for this, we need to understand how the internal structure of satellites, with and without oceans, relates to observable quantities. New research from the University of Texas Geophysical Institute and the University of California, Santa Cruz shows it may be possible to diagnose the presence or absence of liquid water oceans inside some of Uranus' moons, including Miranda and Ariel. There is, Umbriel, and it is thought that this, combined with measurements of the gravitational field, may provide comprehensive constraints on the internal structure and history of Uranus' moons.
Uranus' four major moons, Ariel, Umbriel, Titania, and Oberon, may have oceanic layers. Salty seas, or salty seas, are found beneath the ice and above water-rich and dry rock layers. Miranda is too small to retain enough heat in the ocean layer. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech.
When NASA's Voyager 2 flew by Uranus in 1986, it took grainy photos of the large icy moon.
Now, NASA plans to send another spacecraft to Uranus, this time equipped to see if those icy moons hide oceans of liquid water.
The mission is still in the early planning stages, but planetary researchers are preparing by building a new computer model that can be used to detect oceans beneath the ice using only the rover's cameras.
Their computer model works by analyzing the moon's tiny vibrations, or wobbles, as it orbits its parent planet.
From there, you can calculate how much water, ice, and rock is inside. A small wobble means the moon is mostly solid, while a large wobble means its icy surface is floating in an ocean of liquid water.
When combined with gravity data, the model calculates the depth of the ocean and the thickness of the overlying ice.
Dr. Doug Hemingway, a planetary scientist at the University of Texas Geophysical Institute, said: “If we find that Uranus' moons have an inland ocean, it means there are a huge number of potentially habitable worlds across the galaxy. It may mean,” he said.
“The discovery of oceans of liquid water on Uranus' moons will change our thinking about the range of possibilities for life.”
All large moons of the solar system, including the moons of Uranus, are tidally locked.
This means that the same side always faces the parent planet while orbiting, as the gravity matches their rotation.
However, this does not mean that the satellite's rotation is completely fixed; all tidally locked satellites will oscillate back and forth during their orbit.
Determining the extent of the wobble is key to learning whether Uranus' moons have oceans, and if so, how large.
A satellite with an ocean of liquid water splashing inside will wobble more than one that is entirely solid. However, even the largest oceans experience only small wobbles. The moon's rotation can shift by just a few hundred feet as it passes through its orbit.
This is still enough for a passing spacecraft to detect it. In fact, this technique was previously used to confirm that Saturn's moon Enceladus has an internal ocean.
To find out whether the same technique would work on Uranus, Dr. Hemingway and his colleague Dr. Francis Nimmo of the University of California, Santa Cruz performed theoretical calculations on Uranus's five moons, using a variety of the most I came up with a plausible scenario.
Detecting smaller oceans means the spacecraft will need to get closer or carry more powerful cameras.
“The next step is to extend the model to include measurements from other instruments and see how this improves the interior of the satellite,” Dr. Hemingway said.
of the team work Published in a magazine Geophysical Research Letters.
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DJ Hemingway and F. Nemo. 2024. Search for the underground ocean inside Uranus's moon using balance and gravity. Geophysical Research Letters 51 (18): e2024GL110409;doi: 10.1029/2024GL110409
This article is a version of a press release provided by the University of Texas.
Previous studies have found signs of ice in permanently shadowed regions near the moon’s south pole, including areas within the Cabeus, Howarth, Shoemaker, and Faustini craters. A new analysis of data from NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) shows there is widespread evidence of water ice outside Antarctica, at least within a permanently shadowed region toward 77 degrees south latitude. Ta.
This figure shows the distribution of permanently shadowed regions (blue) toward the moon’s poles at 80 degrees south latitude. They are overlaid on a digital elevation map of the lunar surface (gray) from the Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter Instrument aboard NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter. Image credit: NASA / GSFC / Timothy P. McClanahan.
Ice may have been embedded in the lunar regolith by comet or meteor impacts, emitted as steam (gas) from the moon’s interior, or formed by chemical reactions between hydrogen in the solar wind and oxygen in the regolith. there is.
Permanently shadowed regions (PSRs) typically occur in topographic depressions near the moon’s poles.
Due to the low angle of the sun, these regions have not seen sunlight for billions of years and are constantly in extremely cold conditions.
Ice molecules are thought to be repeatedly stripped from the regolith by meteorites, cosmic radiation, or sunlight, traveling across the lunar surface and landing on the PSR, where they become trapped in the extreme cold.
The PSR’s continuously cold surface could store ice molecules near the surface for perhaps billions of years, accumulating in sediments large enough for mining.
“Our models and analysis show that the largest ice concentrations are near the coldest parts of the PSR below 75 Kelvin (minus 198 degrees Celsius, or minus 325 degrees Fahrenheit) and on poleward-facing slopes of the PSR. It is expected to occur near the base of the Dr. Timothy McClanahan, researcher at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center.
“It is not possible to accurately measure the volume of ice deposits in the PSR or determine whether they are buried beneath a dry layer of regolith.”
“However, we expect it to be 1 m for each surface.2 If present above these deposits, there should be at least about 5 liters of ice within the top meter of the surface compared to the surrounding area. ”
McClanahan and his colleagues used LRO’s Lunar Exploration Neutron Detector (LEND) instrument to detect signs of ice deposits by measuring moderately energetic “exothermal” neutrons.
Specifically, they used LEND’s Collimating Sensor for Exothermal Neutrons (CSETN), which has a fixed field of view of 30 km (18.6 miles) in diameter.
Neutrons are produced by high-energy galactic cosmic rays that come from powerful deep space events, such as exploding stars, and impact the moon’s surface, destroying regolith atoms and scattering subatomic particles called neutrons.
Neutrons originate from depths of up to about 1 meter (3.3 feet) and ping-pong through the regolith, colliding with other atoms. Some are guided into space and detected by LEND.
Since hydrogen has approximately the same mass as a neutron, neutrons lose relatively more energy in collisions with hydrogen than in collisions with the most common regolith elements.
Therefore, if hydrogen is present in the regolith, its concentration will correspondingly reduce the number of medium-energy neutrons observed.
“We hypothesized that if all PSRs had the same hydrogen concentration, CSETN should detect hydrogen concentrations proportionally depending on their area,” Dr. McClanahan said.
“Therefore, more hydrogen should be observed towards the larger area of the PSR.”
TP McClanahan others. 2024. Evidence of widespread hydrogen sequestration within the lunar south pole cold trap. planet. Science. J 5, 217; doi: 10.3847/PSJ/ad5b55
This article has been adapted from the original release by NASA.
According to some researchers, the moon may have been captured during a close encounter between young Earth and the Earth binary (a system consisting of the moon and other rocks). new paper Published in Planetary Science Journal.
Darren Williams and Michael Zugger explored the concept of collisionless binary exchange for capturing large satellites (comparable to or larger than the Moon) around Earth-mass objects inside and outside the solar system.
During six missions to the Moon from 1969 to 1972, Apollo astronauts collected more than 360 kg (800 pounds) of lunar rocks and soil.
Chemical and isotopic analysis of the material showed it to be similar to rocks and soils on Earth. It was found to be calcium-rich, basaltic, and dated to about 60 million years after the formation of the solar system.
Using that data, planetary scientists gathered at the Kona conference in Hawaii in 1984 reached a consensus that the moon formed from debris after it collided with a young Earth.
“The Kona conference set the story for 40 years,” said Darren Williams, a professor at Penn State University.
“But questions still remained. For example, a moon formed by a collision of planets, with the debris clumped together in a ring, should orbit above the planet's equator. Earth's moon should orbit above the planet's equator. It's circling around.
“The moon is more in line with the sun than the Earth's equator.”
“In an alternative binary exchange capture theory. Earth's gravity separated the binary star and latched onto one of the objects, the moon, which became a satellite orbiting its current plane.”
“There is evidence that this is happening elsewhere in the solar system.”
“The leading hypothesis in this field is that Triton, the largest of Neptune's moons, was drawn into orbit from the Kuiper belt, where one in 10 is thought to be a binary star. There is.”
“Triton orbits Neptune in a retrograde orbit, moving in the opposite direction of the planet's rotation.”
“Its orbit is also highly tilted, making an angle of 67 degrees from Neptune's equator.”
Professor Williams and Professor Michael Zager of Pennsylvania State University argue that Earth could have captured an even larger satellite than the moon, an object the size of Mercury or Mars, but the resulting orbit would not be stable. It was determined that there was a possibility that the
The problem is that the Moon's “capture” orbit started out as an elongated ellipse, not a circle.
Over time, the shape of the orbit changed under the influence of extreme tides.
“Today Earth's tides are more advanced than the Moon's,” Professor Williams said.
“The high tide accelerates the orbit. It gives it a pulsation and gives it a little bit of a boost. Over time, the moon moves away a little bit.”
When the Moon approaches the Earth, the effect is reversed, as it was immediately after capture.
By calculating tidal changes and the size and shape of the orbit, the researchers determined that the moon's initial elliptical orbit had shrunk over a timescale of several thousand years.
The orbit also became more circular, until the moon's rotation became fixed in its orbit around the Earth, as it is now.
“At that point, the tides likely reversed and the moon began to gradually move away,” Professor Williams said.
“Each year, the Moon moves 3 centimeters away from Earth. At its current distance from Earth – 385,000 km (239,000 miles) – the Moon feels a significant pull from the Sun's gravity.”
“The moon is so far away right now that both the sun and Earth are competing for your attention. They're both being pulled by it.”
Mathematically, the researchers calculated, a satellite captured in a binary exchange could behave similarly to Earth's moon. However, it is not certain whether this is the origin of the moon.
“No one knows how the moon formed,” Professor Williams says.
“For the past 40 years, we've had one possibility as to how it got there.”
“Now we have two. This opens up a treasure trove of new questions and opportunities for further research.”
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Darren M. Williams and Michael E. Zagar. 2024. Formation of large-scale terrestrial satellites through binary exchange acquisition. Planetary Science Journal 5(9):208;doi: 10.3847/PSJ/ad5a9a
There is plenty of geological evidence that the Moon had ancient volcanic activity, but it is unclear how long that activity lasted. Magma eruptions create volcanic glass, which has been found in lunar samples before. Dr. Li Qiuli of the Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, and colleagues analyzed about 3,000 glass beads taken from lunar soil samples collected by China's Chang'e-5 mission. They identified three glass beads as being of volcanic origin based on their texture, chemical composition, and sulfur isotopes. Uranium-lead dating of these volcanic beads determined that they formed about 123 million years ago.
Volcanic eruptions that produced glass beads on the Moon. Image courtesy of T. Zhang & Y. Wang.
Samples collected by the Apollo, Luna and Chang'e-5 missions have so far shown that the Moon experienced widespread basaltic volcanic activity between about 4.4 billion and 2 billion years ago.
The findings suggest that, at least on small, localized scales, volcanic activity continued for much longer than previously thought.
“Dating of lunar volcanic basalt samples returned to Earth by the Apollo and Luna missions or delivered to Earth as lunar meteorites reveals that lunar basaltic volcanism continued at least 2.9 to 2.8 billion years ago,” the researchers said.
“However, analysis of lunar samples returned by the Chang'e-5 mission demonstrates that basaltic volcanism persisted at least 2 billion years ago.”
“Remote sensing observations suggest that there may have been more recent volcanic activity on the Moon during the Late Copernican epoch (less than 800 million years ago).”
“However, none of these remote sensing observations provide precise dates for possible volcanic activity.”
“Furthermore, the proposed Late Copernican Ocean basalt outbursts cover only a limited area, and no samples are available.”
“Eruptions of gas-rich magma can produce magma fountains that produce sub-millimeter glass beads.”
“These beads could be deposited over a wide area and then transported farther across the lunar surface by impacts.”
“Volcanic glass may be a trace component in existing samples.”
In their study, Dr Li and his co-authors sorted 3,000 tiny glass beads retrieved from lunar samples collected by Chang'e-5, examining the beads' chemical composition, physical texture, and sulfur isotopes to distinguish between volcanic glass and glass produced by meteorite impacts.
They identified three of the beads as being of volcanic origin and used radiometric dating to determine that the beads were formed 123 million years ago.
Volcanic beads are rich in potassium, phosphorus, and rare earth elements, known as KREEP elements, which can produce radioactive heat.
Localized heating by KREEP elements could melt rocks in the Moon's mantle, causing small amounts of magma to erupt to the surface.
“The volcanic glass beads contained large amounts of rare earth elements and thorium, which may indicate that recent volcanic activity is associated with local enrichment of heat-producing elements in the mantle source of magma,” the researchers said.
Wang Biwen others2024. Samples brought back indicate volcanic activity on the moon 120 million years ago. Science 385 (6713); doi: 1077-1080; doi: 10.1126/science.adk6635
New research suggests that volcanoes on the Moon were active during the time of the dinosaurs on Earth, but much more recently than previously believed.
Initial analysis of samples collected by the Chang’e-5 lunar mission suggested that volcanic activity ceased approximately 2 billion years ago, updating an earlier evaluation that the Moon had been devoid of active volcanoes for about 4 billion years.
Researchers examined around 3,000 lunar glass beads that may have been produced by volcanic eruptions or meteorite impacts, identifying three of them as of volcanic origin based on their texture and chemical makeup.
The research team expressed being “surprised and excited” by their “unexpected” discoveries.
The presence of relatively recent lunar volcanism “implies that a small celestial body like the Moon may have retained enough internal heat to support activity until very late,” co-authors Professor Li Qili and Associate Professor He Yuyang from the Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, shared in an email.
However, it remains “unclear” why the Moon has remained volcanically active for such a long period, as per the study.
Planetary volcanologist Qian Yuqi from the University of Hong Kong commented that identifying such a young volcano has “major” implications for the Moon’s development.
“Where did they originate from?” Qian, who was not part of the research, inquired in an email. “This could lead to future missions to search for them.”
The Chang’e-5 lunar mission marked the first return of lunar samples since the U.S. Apollo program in the 1970s and the Soviet Union’s Luna 24 mission. In June, China achieved a historic feat by retrieving rocks from the far side of the Moon through its Chang’e-6 mission.
Life on Earth has faced various threats over millions of years, from asteroids to pandemics to climate change. According to the IPCC, nearly one in five terrestrial species is at risk of extinction by 2100 due to rising global temperatures.
Marine life is also in peril, with coral reefs disappearing rapidly. Dr. Mary Hagedorn, a coral reef expert, has been working on cryopreserving coral to ensure its survival and potential reintroduction into ecosystems.
Her innovative idea involves creating a lunar biorepository to store frozen cell samples of key species for ecosystem reconstruction. The moon’s cold temperatures and protection from radiation make it an ideal location for such a vault.
The focus is on preserving fibroblasts, which can be reprogrammed into different cell types, including stem cells for cloning. This initiative aims to safeguard Earth’s ecosystems and potentially support future human space exploration, such as Mars missions.
While the concept may seem futuristic, the team has already begun freezing cell samples from species like the starry goby for testing. The ultimate goal is to send diverse genetic samples to the lunar vault to ensure the preservation of essential species.
Creating a biorepository on the moon presents logistical challenges but could be achievable with NASA’s support and funding. Future generations might benefit from this innovative approach to conservation and space exploration.
Dr. Mary Hagedorn and Professor Ian Crawford are leading experts in this field, with a focus on conservation, lunar science, and astrobiology. Their research and work contribute to the understanding of ecosystems and the future of space exploration.
Skywatchers on a budget will be excited for a night of celestial luck on Monday, as they have the chance to witness a supermoon and a seasonal blue moon together.
NASA explains that a blue moon, by its technical definition (the third full moon in a season of four), occurs approximately once every 10 years.
A supermoon happens when the moon is full at its closest point to Earth in its orbit. These occurrences vary, with the most intense supermoons appearing around 14 percent larger than when the full moon is farthest from Earth. While this supermoon may not be among the most intense, it still qualifies as a supermoon according to NASA.
The moon’s colors will appear off-white and grey, with hints of brown and yellow.
As per NASA, a “super blue moon” can happen every 20 years. NASA’s FAQ confirms: It’s set to be a bright Monday night.
People watch as a super blue moon rises behind Nacka in Stockholm on Monday. Jonathan Nackstrand/AFP-Getty Images
With the new blue moon definition (the second full moon in a month with two full moons) and the traditional seasonal blue moon definition, a super blue moon can be expected once every five years.
The next occurrence of a moon similar to Monday’s, as a supermoon coinciding with a seasonal blue moon, is scheduled for August 21, 2032, according to NASA. The next supermoon aligned with a monthly blue moon will take place in January 2037.
Monday’s super blue moon also acts as an indicator for the remaining 30 days of summer, which ends on September 21st.
“Seasonal blue moons consistently occur roughly a month before the vernal equinox or summer solstice,” NASA highlights in an FAQ.
Many Americans anticipating this unique celestial event may face disappointment as the National Weather Service forecasts thunderstorms overnight from the northern Mid-Atlantic to New England, with a chance in the High Plains regions.
For those in the San Francisco Bay area, where the moon is expected to be visible, skies are predicted to be mostly clear, ensuring that “the supermoon will be visible tonight,” as stated by the National Weather Service.
During the Giants-Chicago White Sox game, scheduled to commence an hour before sunset, Denver’s Blue Moon Brewing is organizing a post-game drone spectacle for fans at Oracle Park.
“Once the Giants-White Sox game concludes, the stadium lights will dim, and the sky above Oracle Park will illuminate with a drone show titled ‘Once in a Blue Moon,’ as confirmed by the brewery in a statement.
Shackleton Crater on the south pole of the moon is an area in permanent shadow
LROC/Shadowcam/NASA/KARI/ASU
A backup of Earth-based life could be safely stored in a permanently dark spot on the Moon’s surface, without the need for power or maintenance, and could potentially be restored if life becomes extinct.
Mary Hagedorn Researchers at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute in Washington, DC, and their colleagues proposed building the lunar biorepository as a response to extinctions occurring on Earth.
The plan has three main goals: to protect the diversity of life on Earth, to preserve species that may be useful for space exploration, such as those that can provide food or biological materials for filtration, and to preserve microorganisms that may be needed in the future to terraform other planets.
Hagedorn said the team wanted to identify a place that wouldn’t require people or energy to store cryogenically frozen living cells at temperatures below minus 196 degrees Celsius, the temperature at which nitrogen becomes liquid and all biological processes stop.
“There’s no place on Earth cold enough to put passive storage, which has to be kept at minus 196 degrees Celsius, so we thought about space or the moon,” Hagedorn said.
She said the team chose the lunar south pole because of a deep crater with a cold area that’s permanently in shadow. Burying the samples about two meters below the surface would also protect them from radiation, she said.
Previous attempts to build safe biovaults have met with mixed success. The Svalbard Global Seed Vault in Norway is located in the Arctic and was built to be permanently kept at or below -18 degrees Celsius by the surrounding permafrost, but climate change and rising temperatures threaten its long-term safety.
Biorepository facilities in other parts of the world, especially those located close to cities, are human-power dependent and vulnerable to geopolitical upheaval.
Andrew Pask David B. Schneider, a researcher at the University of Melbourne in Australia who is building an Australian seed repository, is enthusiastic about the idea: “We want to look at the same samples in the same facility to ensure their safety, and at the moment the Moon seems like the safest place,” he says.
but Rachel Lapin A researcher from Monash University in Melbourne says there are many challenges and disadvantages to using the Moon, especially the difficulty of accessing it to add or remove samples. She says it might be better to store samples on Earth with lots of redundancy, so that if one repository fails, others are available.
“I want to see compelling evidence that storage will be available if needed,” she said.
Even if this moon vault is not used, Alice Gorman Researchers at Flinders University in Adelaide, Australia, see value in preserving human remains in space, and believe they might one day be accessible to extraterrestrial civilizations.
“Whether it’s cryogenically frozen biological tissue or DNA, or the full text of Wikipedia stored on a high-density nickel disk, the repository will be similar to the Voyager Golden Records,” Gorman says, referring to the metal disks containing humanity’s story attached to the spacecraft currently leaving the solar system.
A base below the surface of the moon may be needed to protect moon residents from radiation.
Shutterstock/Shiva Shankara
To protect astronauts on the Moon from harmful radiation, a long-term lunar base would need to be protected by 2-3 metres of regolith – the layer of rock and dust on the Moon’s surface.
Guo Jingnan and Mikhail Dbinde Researchers at the Hefei University of Science and Technology in China analyzed how the thickness of shielding for a lunar base would affect radiation doses for people living on the Moon. Their study included using lunar soil as shielding as well as additional artificial shielding.
According to Guo, there are two main types of radiation that are dangerous to astronauts: the ubiquitous background levels of galactic cosmic rays, which pose a long-term cancer risk, and solar energetic particles (SEPs) from sporadic solar activity. These SEPs can cause more serious symptoms of radiation exposure, such as skin damage and damage to bone marrow and lymphatic tissue, which are involved in the production of blood cells and platelets. In severe cases, exposure to SEPs can lead to death.
“The amount of radiation on the lunar surface is not constant,” Guo said. “For a short lunar stay that does not encounter a strong SEP, the radiation impact should be small.”
But if a solar explosion were to occur, the danger could be enormous. For example, at the end of the Apollo program, Apollo 16 landed astronauts on the Moon for a few days in April 1972. It was followed by Apollo 17 in December of the same year. During that time, there was a massive radiation storm.
“A very large SEP event could have occurred during September, potentially killing any unprotected astronauts on the lunar surface,” Guo said.
The study also found that too little regolith shielding could be worse than no shielding at all, because lunar soil scatters radiation and produces various types of secondary particles, including neutrons. This secondary radiation peaks about 50 centimetres deep on the lunar surface but drops off rapidly beyond that.
“Neutrons have a large biological impact because they interact efficiently with the human body and induce radiation effects in internal organs,” Guo said. “With about 50 centimeters of shielding, neutrons can account for more than 90 percent of the total effective radiation dose.”
The study found that a three-metre deep base could safely house the same crew for more than 20 years without exceeding lifetime and annual radiation limits set by the space agency.
Guo says two metres of shielding would be enough for a single crew member to stay on the moon for no more than a few months, and that crew members could return to Earth frequently enough to avoid exceeding lifetime and annual radiation health limits, she says.
The most practical way to reduce radiation exposure would be to give the base natural shielding, by building it in an existing cave or lava tube, or by constructing habitats below the surface, Guo said.
Better prediction of solar storms is also important to keep astronauts safe when they leave base and conduct surface activities, she said.
Titan’s north polar region, imaged using Cassini’s radar signature, shows blue hydrocarbon oceans.
NASA / JPL-Caltech / Italian Space Agency / USGS
The most detailed look yet at Saturn’s moon Titan’s strange lakes has revealed a diverse marine landscape similar to Earth’s, with a mix of freshwater rivers and saltwater oceans.
Unlike Earth’s watery oceans, Titan’s lakes are composed of methane and ethane, which are liquid at the planet’s average surface temperature, about −179 °C (−290 °F).
Radar measurements from NASA’s Cassini spacecraft, which orbited Saturn from 2004 to 2017, suggested differences in the lakes’ properties, including their composition and surface waves, but the signals didn’t contain enough information to distinguish between them.
now, Valerio Poggiali Poggiali and his colleagues at Cornell University in New York used a different radar technique to map the composition and surface of Titan’s oceans, revealing that the amount of ethane increases as you move south across the planet from the north pole. “The further north you go, the cleaner and purer the oceans become. They’re dominated by methane,” Poggiali says.
Previous radar measurements were made using signals sent and received at the same location on the Cassini spacecraft, which meant the reflected radio waves were polarized in one direction, or twisted.
The new study analyzed signals from Cassini’s radar that were reflected off the lake’s surface and picked up by NASA’s Deep Space Network, a radio antenna on Earth. The shallow angle of the reflected signal meant it contained two different polarized waves, giving Poggiali and his colleagues more information about the lake’s properties.
They found that many of the rivers and estuaries that feed the lake have rough surfaces caused by wind-driven waves, which could be a sign of active tides and currents feeding into the lake, Poggiali said. “Surface activity is very important if we want to plan future missions like a Titan submarine, but also to better understand Titan’s environment in terms of wind and atmospheric properties.”
Poggiali and his colleagues also found that the methane content was higher before the river flowed into the lake, which could help trace the methane and ethane cycle on Titan, Poggiali says. Ingo Muller-Wodarg “On Earth, when rivers flow into large, salty oceans, we find that the water becomes less saline near where the river flows in,” say researchers from Imperial College London. “Something similar is happening here, but it’s not the salinity that’s the problem, it’s the relative proportions of methane and ethane.”
Caves on the moon have been identified by scientists not too far from where Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed 55 years ago. They speculate that there could be hundreds more caves that could be suitable for future astronauts to inhabit.
A team of researchers led by Italians reported on Monday that they have evidence of a large cavern accessible through the deepest hole on the moon’s surface. This cavern is situated in Mare Tranquility, just 250 miles (400 kilometers) from the Apollo 11 landing site.
The hole, like over 200 others found in that area, was created by the collapse of a lava tube.
The researchers examined radar measurements from NASA’s lunar rover and compared their findings to lava tubes on Earth. Their findings were published in the journal Nature Astronomy.
Scientists state that the radar data has only uncovered the initial section of the underground chamber, which they estimate to be at least 130 feet (40 meters) wide and potentially even longer.
Leonardo Carrell and Lorenzo Bruzzone from the University of Trento expressed their excitement in an email saying, “The lunar caves have remained a mystery for more than 50 years, so it’s exciting to finally be able to prove their existence.”
Most of the holes on the moon seem to be situated in the ancient lava plains, and there might also be caves at the moon’s south pole, where NASA intends to send astronauts in 10 years. A crater in perpetual shadow there is believed to contain frozen water that could be used for drinking or as rocket fuel.
NASA’s Apollo program successfully landed 12 astronauts on the moon, starting with Armstrong and Aldrin on July 20, 1969.
These findings suggest that the Moon could have numerous caves and lava tubes, providing natural shelter for astronauts and shielding them from cosmic rays, solar radiation, and micrometeorite impacts. Constructing habitats from scratch would be more time-consuming and challenging, even if cave walls need reinforcement to prevent collapse.
The rocks and other materials in these caves, unaffected by the harsh surface conditions for hundreds of millions of years, could also help scientists gain a better understanding of how the Moon evolved, especially in terms of its volcanic activity.
Proposed underground geometry of the Mare Tranquillitatis on the Moon
Wagner and Robinson
A network of caves may be hidden just beneath the Moon's surface, and researchers may have finally discovered an access point. These caves have long been predicted, but until now it has been difficult to prove their existence or find a way to directly explore them with future missions.
The Moon's surface is dotted with holes, or so-called skylights, which are openings in the ceilings of caves that are thought to have been formed by the collapse of ancient lava tubes – tunnels formed when lava flows beneath the solid crust. Leonardo Carrell Researchers from the University of Trento in Italy have discovered that the deepest part of these formations, the “The Pit of the Sea of TranquilityThese images were taken by NASA's Lunar Rover in 2010.
By comparing their simulations with lava tubes on Earth, the researchers found that the Mare Tranquillitatis hole appears to open into a large cavern buried at least 400 feet (130 meters) underground. The cave appears to be about 150 feet (45 meters) wide and at least 100 feet (30 meters) long, but could be much larger.
Caves like these could offer a unique window into the evolution of the Moon, says Carell. “Analyzing rocks from lunar caves, which have not been altered by the harsh lunar environment, could provide important insights into key scientific questions, such as the timeline and duration of volcanic activity on the Moon and the actual composition of the Moon's mantle,” Carell says.
The same stone ceiling that protects the cave rocks from the intense radiation experienced on the surface could also provide valuable shielding for future human explorers on the Moon. “Unlike the surface of the Moon, where temperatures change dramatically between day and night, [the caves] “It has a stable internal temperature, and it's also a natural shield against radiation and impacts,” Carrell says.
The idea of using natural caves like these as lunar base camps has long been popular, and future astronauts may one day call the Sea of Tranquility home.
Ever wondered if any moons in the solar system have a dense atmosphere like Earth? Currently, scientists believe that Saturn’s moon Titan is the only one with such an atmosphere. Despite being 2.5 times smaller than Earth, Titan has an atmospheric pressure 1.5 times greater than Earth’s. Studies of Titan’s atmosphere from outside the solar system have shown that it consists of around 94% nitrogen, 6% methane, 0.1% hydrogen, and small amounts of complex organic molecules. The Huygens mission data provides more insight into this.
Initially, scientists thought that Titan’s haze formed through the breakdown and recombination of nitrogen and methane by sunlight. However, this explanation couldn’t account for the presence of complex organic molecules which require high temperatures to form. Recent research suggests that these molecules may have originated during a meteorite impact event in Titan’s atmosphere, particularly due to the proximity of Titan to Saturn’s E ring which disperses organic material from moons like Enceladus.
To test this new theory, researchers at Princeton University created a model to predict the formation of molecules during meteorite impacts in Titan’s atmosphere. By combining data from observations of Saturn’s rings and Titan’s atmospheric chemistry from the Huygens probe, they estimated the types of organic molecules that could result from these impacts. They found that only meteorites larger than 0.02 grams could trigger such events in Titan’s atmosphere, with material mostly originating from atolls surrounding the solar system.
The team also identified a hot zone known as the “Cylindrical shock wave” around the falling meteorite, reaching temperatures of 10,000 K. This wave could facilitate the synthesis of complex organic molecules at lower temperatures in the region surrounding the impact. Meteorites falling from Enceladus are suggested to contribute significantly to Titan’s organic-rich haze layer, particularly at altitudes where shock waves are most efficient in synthesizing organic molecules.
The researchers proposed that observations from future missions, such as Dragonfly, could further validate their models by studying the frequency of medium-sized meteorite impacts on Titan. These observations could provide more insights into the formation of Titan’s unique atmosphere and iconic haze layer.
Have you ever looked up at Earth’s Moon and wondered where it came from? Most scientists agree that a small planet called Theia collided with the young Earth 4.5 billion years ago. Most of the debris from this giant impact coalesced to become the Moon we see today. But where did the rest of Theia go? Qian Yuan and his colleagues hypothesize that Earth absorbed parts of Theia during the impact, and that these remnants of Theia remain deep inside Earth to this day.
Scientists believe that waves called mechanical energy waves Seismic wavesAs it passes through certain zones inside the Earth, its speed slows down. Large slow states Previous researchers have suggested that these zones are graveyards of ancient ocean floors that sunk into the Earth’s interior during plate tectonics, but Yuan’s team proposes that these zones could be the remains of Theia.
The research team found that the LLVP contains gases such as hydrogen, carbon dioxide, and nitrogen. Volatile substancesVolatiles are most likely present during the formation of solar systems and planets, when material floating in space begins to accumulate. Because volatiles are light, they can escape into space if they get the chance. When Earth and Theia collided, volatiles from both planets were caught up in the collision. Scientists believe that most of the volatiles escaped into space, but Yuan and his colleagues suggested that some of Theia may have captured these volatiles and sunk deep inside the Earth, forming the LLVP.
To test whether the LLVP is a remnant of Theia, the researchers used a computer model designed to test how different types of solid matter interact with each other. Thermal evolution modelHe explained that other researchers have shown that Theia is made of a much denser material than Earth, so they wanted to test whether Theia’s denser material would mix completely with Earth’s or remain separate.
The researchers used a thermal evolution model to randomly scatter chunks of Theia-like material throughout a mass of Earth-like material and calculate how well they would mix. They ran eight models with chunks of different sizes, densities, and temperatures. In almost all of these models, they found that Theia’s material sank deep into the Earth and coalesced into LLVP-like mountains without mixing with Earth’s material.
The researchers performed seven giant impact simulations to further explore how Theia interacted with the young Earth. They used these simulations to collide Theia with Earth and calculate how that impact would have affected the Earth’s interior. These simulations found that after the collision with Theia, denser, more solid material sank toward the center, while less dense material stayed toward the surface, resulting in a layered Earth’s interior. The researchers explain that these simulations also suggest that denser material from Theia sunk deep inside the Earth without mixing.
The researchers concluded that Theia’s remains may have sunk to Earth and coalesced into a region similar to the LLVP, where it remained for the next 4.5 billion years. They further proposed that if Theia’s material was preserved inside the Earth for billions of years, the composition of the Earth’s interior could have changed.
They suggested that future researchers test their hypothesis by comparing the composition of the LLVP with basalts found on the Moon to see if it matches up. They also suggested that researchers use newer, more accurate models of Earth’s thermal evolution to further explore how Theia’s impact with Earth may have affected the evolution of Earth’s interior and the formation of the LLVP.
These bright (hot) “heat rings” are a common phenomenon and indicate active lava lakes. Jupiter Infrared Auroral Mapper (JIRAM) instrument aboard NASA’s Juno spacecraft.
Visible, infrared and temperature maps of Loki Patera and Dazhbog Patera. Image courtesy of Mura others., doi: 10.1038/s43247-024-01486-5.
Io is the innermost of Jupiter’s four Galilean moons and the fourth largest moon in the solar system.
Apart from Earth, it is the only known place in the solar system with volcanoes that spew hot lava like Earth’s.
Io has over 400 active volcanoes, which are caused by tidal heating due to gravity from Jupiter and the other Jovian moons.
There are many theories about the types of volcanic eruptions on the Moon, but little data to support them.
NASA’s Juno spacecraft will pass by Io in May and October 2023, coming within about 35,000 km (21,700 miles) and 13,000 km (8,100 miles), respectively.
Among Juno’s observational instruments giving a closer look at the fascinating moon was JIRAM.
JIRAM is designed to capture infrared light emitted from deep within Jupiter, studying the weather layer 50 to 70 km (30 to 45 miles) below Jupiter’s cloud tops.
However, during Juno’s long mission, the mission team also used the instrument to study moons such as Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto.
JIRAM images of Io showed the presence of bright rings surrounding the base of many hotspots.
“The high spatial resolution of JIRAM’s infrared images, combined with Juno’s favorable position during the flyby, revealed that Io’s entire surface is covered by lava lakes in caldera-like formations,” said Dr Alessandro Mura, a researcher at the National Institute for Astrophysics in Rome and Juno co-investigator.
“In the area of Io’s surface where we have the most complete data, we estimate that about 3% of it is covered by one of these lava lakes. Calderas are large depressions that form when volcanoes erupt and collapse.”
This image taken by NASA’s Galileo spacecraft shows volcanic eruptions on Io. Image credit: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona.
JIRAM’s flyby data will not only reveal Io’s rich lava reserves, but also provide a glimpse into what’s going on beneath the surface.
Infrared images of some of Io’s lava lakes show a thin circular layer of lava at the boundary between the central crust that covers most of the lake and the lake walls.
The lack of lava flows above or beyond the lake’s edge suggests melt circulation, demonstrating a balance between the melt erupted into the lava lake and that circulated back into the subsurface system.
“We now know what the most frequent volcanic activity on Io is: huge lava lakes with magma rising and falling,” Dr Mura said.
“The lava crust collapses against the lake wall, forming the typical lava rings seen in Hawaiian lava lakes.”
“The walls are thought to be hundreds of metres high, which explains why magma is not typically observed spilling out of pateras – bowl-shaped formations formed by volcanic activity – and moving across the lunar surface.”
JIRAM data suggests that the surfaces of these Io hotspots consist largely of a rocky crust that periodically moves up and down as one continuous surface due to central upwelling of magma.
In this hypothesis, friction between the crust and the lake wall would prevent it from sliding, causing it to deform and eventually break away, exposing the lava just below the surface.
Another hypothesis, which remains valid, is that magma wells up in the middle of the lake, spreading out and forming a crust that sinks along the lake’s edge, exposing the lava.
“We’re just beginning to look at the results from JIRAM’s approach to Io in December 2023 and February 2024,” said Juno principal investigator Dr. Scott Bolton from the Southwest Research Institute.
“These observations reveal fascinating new information about Io’s volcanic activity.”
“When we combine these new results with Juno’s long-term campaign to monitor and map Io’s never-before-seen north and south pole volcanoes, JIRAM is poised to become one of the most valuable tools for learning about the workings of this tormented world.”
Stonehenge, an ancient prehistoric temple in southern England, remains a fascinating mystery. Construction began around 5,000 years ago, but the purpose of this enigmatic site remains unknown as its builders left no written records.
Analysis has shown that the massive stones of Stonehenge were transported from distant quarries, some weighing over 20 tonnes.
The alignment of Stonehenge with the sun during the solstices is well-documented, but its potential connection with the moon has intrigued experts. Scholars are exploring whether Stonehenge was not only designed to align with the sun but also with the moon, a remarkable achievement for a society predating the invention of the wheel.
On June 21, 2024, experts are investigating the relationship between Stonehenge and the lunar cycles as a rare lunar standstill event unfolds.
Professor Michael Parker Pearson, a renowned expert in British prehistory, speculates that Stonehenge’s builders may have aimed to unify people, ancestors, land, and the cosmos by linking the movements of the sun and moon.
The lunar standstill, occurring once every 18.6 years, results in the moon reaching its most extreme northern and southern positions in the night sky. This phenomenon, unlike the annual solstices tied to the sun, creates a unique celestial display.
While Stonehenge’s alignment with the solstices is well-known, its relationship with the lunar cycles remains less understood. Research indicates that burials at Stonehenge predate the arrival of the large stones, and possible alignments suggest a connection with the lunar standstill phenomenon.
An ongoing study by experts from Oxford, Leicester, and Bournemouth universities aims to delve into the significance of the moon in Stonehenge’s construction, potentially reshaping our understanding of this ancient monument.
Experts like Professor Parker Pearson, Professor Ruggles, and Dr. Chadburn are at the forefront of unraveling the mysteries of Stonehenge and its celestial connections.
The Chang’e-6 probe is recovered in Xiziwang Banner, Inner Mongolia, China.
Xinhua/Shutterstock
China’s Chang’e-6 spacecraft has returned to Earth, bringing back the first chunk of space rock from the far side of the moon.
The capsule separated from the orbital container at around 1:20 p.m. local time, 5,000 kilometers above the Atlantic Ocean, and landed in Xiziwang Banner, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, China on June 25.
The sample, which should contain about 2 kilograms of lunar material, descended the final 10 kilometres by parachute, landing at 2:07pm and being retrieved by scientists from the China National Space Administration.
Landing on the far side of the moon is difficult because it always faces away from Earth and there is no direct communication line, and this area’s surface remained unexplored until a Chinese spacecraft landed there earlier this month.
The landing and recovery operations relied heavily on autonomous processes and robotic tools, but Chinese engineers were able to send messages to the spacecraft through the Queqiao-2 relay satellite, which was launched in March this year and is still orbiting the moon.
The samples include surface and two meters of material scooped up by Chang’e-6 drilling into its landing site in Apollo Crater, which is within the larger South Pole-Aitken Basin. Scientists hope that this material will help explain how and when these basins formed, and may enable understanding of the origins of other similar lunar craters.
The rocks may indicate the amount of water ice in the region, which could be a key resource for a manned mission that China hopes to send to the moon by 2030.
Before embarking on its crewed mission, China plans to send two more spacecraft, Chang’e-7 and Chang’e-8, to the lunar south pole to gather information on a potential site for a base to be called the International Lunar Research Station. China is leading the mission in collaboration with Russian space agency Roscosmos.
The Moon, Earth’s steadfast companion that remains in orbit, has been a popular subject of discussion since the early days of space exploration. Missions have been planned, rovers have explored its surface, and even a flag has been planted there.
But why all the interest? The Moon is over 400,000 km away from Earth, a considerable distance to travel, and it poses many challenges as a potential habitat for humans, such as exposure to solar radiation.
However, the Moon offers other advantages. Being largely untouched, it presents opportunities for planetary research, scientific experiments, and notably, mining for valuable resources.
There is a growing interest in lunar exploration, raising the important question of lunar ownership. Philosopher and author AC Grayling addresses this topic in his new book, “Who owns the moon?”
SF: Why are we interested in going to the moon, and will it ever happen?
ACG: The Moon holds vast resources, making it a lucrative target for mining operations. Coupled with the rapid pace of technological advancements, the obstacles to lunar exploration are likely to be overcome. Significant investments are being made in this endeavor, indicating the potential benefits that could be derived.
While some argue that lunar exploration is not feasible, the lure of valuable resources like Helium-3 for clean nuclear fusion makes the Moon an attractive destination for mining activities.
SF: So who actually owns the moon?
The 1967 Outer Space Treaty, agreed upon by the United Nations, asserts that the Moon cannot be militarized or claimed for sovereignty or ownership. It is considered a shared resource belonging to all of humanity.
With various nations eyeing lunar exploration and exploitation, concerns about potential conflicts arise, highlighting the need for clearer regulations and agreements.
What are the next steps? Will the law be strengthened?
Efforts are being made to establish binding regulations, but the presence of multiple space agencies and rivalries between nations complicate the process. Initiatives like the Artemis Accords aim to set guidelines for responsible behavior in space.
However, the prospect of a new space race between major powers like the US, China, and Russia raises concerns about the potential for conflict and competition in space.
Can history give us any indication of what might happen?
The Antarctic Treaty serves as a model for international cooperation in preserving shared resources. However, challenges to extend the treaty’s scope and conflicting claims in Antarctica hint at the complexities of managing common territories.
Similar issues could arise in lunar exploration, especially with the potential for valuable mineral resources like Helium-3. The absence of clear regulations and the lack of a universal agreement on space governance present significant hurdles.
Is there an argument to leave the moon alone?
Given the Moon’s vast and barren nature, concerns about environmental impacts are minimal compared to Earth. Utilizing lunar resources for space exploration and sustainable practices could be more beneficial in the long run.
What’s the next step after the moon?
The Moon’s potential as a refueling station for Mars missions opens up new possibilities for further space exploration. As colonies on celestial bodies evolve, questions of independence and governance will arise, shaping the future of human presence in space.
In conclusion, the direction of space activities will determine whether they align with values upheld on Earth or devolve into profit-driven ventures. Clear regulations and international cooperation are essential to ensure a sustainable and equitable future in space.
About our expert, A.C. Grayling
AC Grayling is a philosopher and author of the book “Whose Moon is It?” He is also the founder of the New College of the Humanities and a respected figure in literary criticism and intellectual discourse.
The Moon, Earth’s loyal companion that remains steadfast in its orbit around our planet, has been a topic of fascination and exploration ever since the early days of space travel. Missions have been planned, rovers have traversed its surface, and even a flag has been planted on its barren landscape.
But what is the appeal of the Moon? Situated about 400,000 km away from Earth, it poses numerous challenges for human habitation, such as high levels of solar radiation. However, the Moon offers a unique opportunity for planetary research, scientific experiments, and potentially lucrative mining ventures due to its untapped resources.
With the allure of untapped resources comes a race to be the first to claim ownership of the Moon. This begs the question: Who does the Moon truly belong to? Philosopher and author AC Grayling explores this complex issue in his latest book, Who owns the moon?
SF: Why the interest in the Moon, and will we ever reach it?
ACG: The Moon holds vast potential for mining operations as it is rich in resources, presenting a more feasible option compared to Earth. Despite logistical challenges, rapid technological advancements and substantial investments indicate that lunar exploration is imminent.
Some argue that a robotic base alone may not suffice for the extraction of valuable resources like Helium-3, crucial for clean nuclear fusion. The lure of economic gains raises concerns about potential conflicts over lunar territory.
SF: So, who lays claim to the Moon?
The 1967 Outer Space Treaty, ratified by the United Nations, prohibits militarization and territorial ownership of the Moon, declaring it a common heritage of mankind. This ambiguity has spurred competition among nations to pioneer lunar technologies.
Efforts to establish guidelines were made in 1979, yet the absence of binding agreements leaves room for potential disputes over lunar resources, particularly valuable elements like Helium-3. The lack of a regulatory framework raises concerns about future conflicts, extending beyond Earth.
Credit: Gremlin
What’s next, and will legal frameworks evolve?
The need for stringent regulations is apparent, given the burgeoning interest in lunar exploration by various space agencies. Proposals for lunar space stations and the Artemis Accords, a collaborative effort among nations for responsible space conduct, hint at evolving norms to govern lunar activities.
Historically, the 1961 Antarctic Treaty provides a model for international cooperation in preserving a common resource. However, challenges arise as countries like China and Russia seek to assert territorial claims in Antarctica, signaling potential conflicts over resource exploitation.
The Moon’s status as a shared resource prompts calls for inclusive lunar laws and international treaties to ensure equitable benefits. Efforts to establish regulatory frameworks face obstacles, mirroring past struggles in maritime law and resource management.
Is there a case for leaving the Moon untouched?
The Moon’s vast expanse and desolate nature diminish concerns over environmental impact, distinguishing it from Earth. Despite existing space debris, the Moon’s remote location offers ample space for exploration and development.
What lies beyond the Moon?
Envisioning a future where lunar infrastructure facilitates Mars exploration through water extraction for fuel production, heralds a new era of space colonization. Echoing historical precedents, colonies in space may strive for autonomy, shaping interplanetary relations akin to terrestrial geopolitics.
As humanity embarks on extraterrestrial endeavors, adherence to ethical principles and equitable resource-sharing remains pivotal for a sustainable cosmic future.
This conversation has been edited for length and clarity.
About our expert, A.C. Grayling
AC Grayling, a distinguished philosopher and author, sheds light on lunar ownership in his book “Whose Moon is It?” He is also the founder of the New College of the Humanities, recognized for his contributions to literary criticism and philosophical discourse.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/University of Idaho
Saturn's largest moon, Titan, has rocky coastlines around its methane seas and lakes that appear to have been carved out by waves, and a NASA mission launching in 2028 may be able to get a closer look.
Titan is the only body in the solar system other than Earth that has liquid on its surface. It has lakes and oceans made of hydrocarbons such as liquid methane, ethane, and other organic molecules. Scientists think that winds in Titan's thick, nitrogen-rich atmosphere drive the waves in these lakes, but this has never been observed directly because Titan's atmosphere is too hazy to see through.
now, Rose Palermo Researchers from the U.S. Geological Survey in Florida and their colleagues found that the shape of Titan's coastline is best explained by the presence of waves that have eroded the ocean surface over eons.
Palermo and his team looked at the shorelines around Titan's largest oceans and lakes, including Kraken Mare and Ligeia Mare, and compared them to coastlines on Earth with known origins, such as Lake Rotoef in New Zealand, which initially formed by floods and later was eroded by waves. The team then created different simulations of Titan's oceans, including those in which the shores were eroded by waves or by dissolving their edges.
Photographed by NASA's Cassini spacecraft, Ligeia Mare on Saturn's moon Titan has a variety of edges that appear to have been carved by waves.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASI/Cornell
The researchers found that images of Titan's coastline, best depicted by wave simulations, resemble Earth's wave-eroded coastlines.
“It's still tentative, but I'm very excited about it.” Ingo Muller-Vodarg The Imperial College London researchers say that although the study did not observe waves themselves, it is very strong evidence that waves exist. Dune-like structures.
The only way to truly verify that waves exist is to send a spacecraft to the surface, like NASA's Dragonfly drone mission, scheduled to launch in 2028, Mueller-Vaudergues said.
Studying Titan's coastlines may also help us understand how the first coasts on Earth formed, Palermo says: “Titan is a unique laboratory for studying coastal processes because it is not influenced by humans or plants. It's a place where we can study coasts only as physical processes.”
how to use SHARK-VIS device Using the Large Binocular Telescope on Mount Graham in Arizona, US, astronomers have captured the highest-resolution optical images of Io ever taken by a ground-based telescope. The new images allow the astronomers to confirm that large-scale surface changes are occurring around Pele, one of Io's most well-known volcanoes.
Taken with the SHARK-VIS camera on the Large Binocular Telescope on January 10, 2024, this image is the highest resolution image of Io ever taken by an Earth-based telescope. The image combines three spectral bands: infrared, red, and green to highlight the reddish ring around Pele volcano (below and to the right of the Moon's center) and the white ring around Piran Patera to the right of Pele. Image credit: INAF / Large Binocular Telescope Observatory / Georgia State University / SHARK-VIS@LBT / PIF Pedichini / D. Hope / S. Jefferies / G. Li Causi.
Io is slightly larger than Earth's Moon and is the most volcanically active body in the solar system.
It is the innermost of Jupiter's Galilean moons, which besides Io include Europa, Ganymede and Callisto.
Io is caught in a gravitational tug-of-war between Jupiter, Europa, and Ganymede, and is constantly compressed, causing frictional heat to build up inside it, which is thought to be the cause of sustained and widespread volcanic activity.
By monitoring Io's surface eruptions, planetary scientists hope to gain insight into the thermal movement of material beneath the moon's surface, its internal structure, and ultimately the mechanisms of tidal heating that drive Io's intense volcanic activity.
Io's volcanic activity was first discovered in 1979, when Linda Morabito, an engineer for NASA's Voyager missions, spotted plumes of smoke in one of the images the spacecraft took during its famous Grand Tour of the outer planets.
Since then, countless observations have been made, both from space and from telescopes on Earth, documenting Io's restless nature.
“Io offers a unique opportunity to learn about the powerful eruptions that contributed to shaping the surfaces of the Earth and Moon long ago,” said Dr Al Conrad, an astronomer at the Large Binocular Telescope Observatory.
The new images, taken with the large binocular telescope SHARK-VIS, are so detailed that they enabled the team to identify a major resurfacing event in which the plume deposits around a prominent volcano known as Pele, located near the equator in Io's southern hemisphere, have been covered by eruption deposits from a neighboring volcano, Piran Patera.
A similar series of eruptions was observed by NASA's Galileo spacecraft, which explored the Jovian system from 1995 to 2003.
“We interpret this change as dark lava deposits and white sulfur dioxide deposits from the Piran Patera eruption partially covering Pele's red sulfur-rich plume deposits,” said Dr. Ashley Davis, principal scientist at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
“Before SHARK-VIS, it was impossible to observe these resurfacing events from Earth.”
“The visible light images are absolutely stunning,” said Imke de Patter, a professor at the University of California, Berkeley.
“Pele appears to be erupting continuously, spewing plumes of volcanic gases about 300 kilometers above Io's surface, high enough to have been photographed by Voyager, Galileo and Hubble.”
“Gases in the plume erupting from the lava lake freeze and are deposited on the surface as a conspicuous, wide, reddish, sulfur-rich ring.”
“Piran Patera, on the other hand, appears to erupt intermittently, leaving lava surrounded by a white ring of frozen sulfur dioxide.”
“The new images show that the white sediments obscure Pele's reddish sediments, but perhaps only for a short time.”
“Images of Io taken by NASA's Juno spacecraft in April 2024 will show a nearly perfect orange ring, with perhaps a faint hint of red where the Piran deposits were located.”
“It's like a race between Piram and Pele to see how much and how fast each can deposit.”
“Once Piran stops completely, it will be covered again with Pele's red deposits.”
Illustration of the Chang’e 6 spacecraft landing on the moon
Source: cnsa.gov.cn
China’s Chang’e-6 spacecraft has successfully landed on the far side of the moon and has begun taking lunar rock samples from that area for the first time.
After orbiting the Moon for three weeks, the probe landed on a relatively flat area of Apollo Crater within the South Pole-Aitken impact basin at 6:23 a.m. Beijing time on June 2.
The landing sequence was largely autonomous, as the far side of the moon has no direct communications link with Earth, but engineers were able to monitor the situation and send instructions using the Queqiao-2 relay satellite, which was launched in March this year and is currently in lunar orbit.
Footage from the spacecraft’s camera as it approaches the landing site
Source: cnsa.gov.cn
Once the lander and its attached ascent module separated from the orbital portion of the spacecraft, its engines began a controlled descent, using obstacle avoidance systems and cameras to detect rocks and stones and select a smooth landing area. About 100 meters above the lunar surface, laser scanners selected the final location, after which the engines were shut down and the craft made a cushioned landing.
The lander is currently collecting samples, using a robotic scoop to collect surface material and a drill to extract rocks from about two metres underground, in a process that will take 14 hours over two days, according to the China National Space Administration.
The collected samples will be loaded onto an ascent vehicle and sent through the lunar exosphere to the orbiter module, which will then return to Earth and release the sample-laden re-entry capsule on June 25, which will land at Siziwang Banner in Inner Mongolia.
Sulfur and chlorine isotopes in Io’s atmosphere indicate that Io has been volcanically active throughout the solar system’s 4.57 billion-year history.
This global map of Io was obtained in January 1999 by NASA’s Galileo spacecraft. Image credit: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona.
Jupiter’s moon Io is the most volcanically active body in the solar system.
Io’s volcanic activity is the result of tidal heating due to friction that occurs within the moon’s interior as it is pulled between Jupiter and its neighboring moons Europa and Ganymede.
However, it is not fully understood how long this moon has hosted such extensive volcanic activity.
Due to the Moon’s current level of volcanic activity, Io’s surface is constantly being reworked, leaving only the most recent 1 million years of its geological record.
Stable isotope measurements of volatile elements in Io’s atmosphere could provide information about Io’s volcanic history.
“Io is a moon of Jupiter and is the most volcanically active body in the solar system,” says Dr. Ellie Hughes, a volcanic fluid geochemist at GNS Science.
“Io is in orbital resonance with Jupiter’s other two large moons, Europa and Ganymede.”
“For every time Ganymede orbits Jupiter once, Europa orbits twice and Io orbits four times.”
“This configuration causes Io’s orbit around Jupiter to be elliptical rather than circular, causing Jupiter’s gravity on Io to change periodically.”
“This change in gravity causes something called tidal heating on Io, just as the moon causes ocean tides on Earth, which causes volcanic activity.”
“However, it is unclear whether volcanic activity has occurred on Io over a long period of time or how this activity has changed over Io’s 4.57 billion year history.”
“Io has experienced so much volcanic activity that its surface is constantly being updated, leaving little trace of its past.”
“Fortunately, we can study Io back in time by studying sulfur and its isotopes.”
In the new study, Hughes, Caltech researcher Catherine de Clare, and colleagues used the Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter Array (ALMA) to observe gases in Io’s tenuous atmosphere. , we measured stable isotope radio waves of sulfur and chlorine. Carries molecules.
Scientists believe that both elements have lower concentrations of heavier isotopes compared to the solar system average due to the loss of lighter isotopes from the upper atmosphere as material is continually recycled between Io’s interior and atmosphere. I discovered that it is very plentiful.
The findings show that Io lost 94% to 99% of its sulfur through this outgassing and recycling process.
This would require that Io maintained its current level of volcanic activity throughout its lifetime.
“Sulfur is released into the atmosphere from Io’s interior by tidal heating from volcanic activity,” Hughes said.
“Some of the sulfur is lost to space by Jupiter’s magnetosphere, a bundle of charged particles swirling around Jupiter that continuously bombards Io’s atmosphere.”
“The sulfur that is left behind will eventually be buried back inside Io, ready to start the cycle again.”
“Isotopes of the same element have different weights from each other, so they can behave slightly differently during this cycle.”
“We found that the sulfur lost to space on Io is a little lighter isotopically than the sulfur that is recycled into Io’s interior.”
“Thus, over time, the sulfur left on Io becomes isotopically heavier and heavier. How heavy it gets depends on how long the volcanic activity has been occurring.”
“We found much more isotopically heavy sulfur in Io’s atmosphere than the solar system average. This requires that Io has lost almost all of its original sulfur.”
“Based on numerical modeling, this means that Io has been volcanically active for billions of years, and that tidal heating and orbital resonance have also occurred for most of Io’s history.”
“In the future, variability in atmospheric sulfur isotopic composition may help quantify Io’s average tidal heating rate.”
There is a new space race underway, with missions to the moon increasing at a significant pace. Recently, a spacecraft built by Intuitive Machines became the first U.S. mission to land on the moon since 1972’s Apollo mission.
China is preparing to launch Chang’e 6, furthering their lunar exploration program with plans to bring back lunar rocks from the far side of the moon. A NASA study suggests that 22 international missions could reach the moon by the end of 2026, potentially leading to astronauts leaving footprints on the moon once again.
Despite the exciting progress, researchers like Dr. Alanna Krolikowski and martin elvis warn of dangers overlooked in the rush of exploration. They emphasize the need to protect Sites of Extremely Scientific Significance (SESI) on the moon, similar to protecting special sites on Earth.
Krolikowski stresses the urgency of implementing SESI protections to avoid irreversible harm to these important areas. Two key locations on the moon, its backside shielded from Earth’s radio noise and its poles with valuable volatiles like water ice, require preservation for scientific research and exploration.
“The problem is urgent,” says Krolikowski. “We are facing a rapidly closing window in which SESI protections can be implemented to avoid the worst possible irreversible harm.”
Special attention is drawn to the moon’s poles with areas of eternal darkness that trap important volatiles. These regions hold valuable information about the history of the solar system, particularly in studying the early universe.
Researchers advocate for careful management of activities on the moon to avoid contaminating these special areas and preserving their natural state for exploration.
Proposals for protecting lunar SESIs include identifying and characterizing these areas, establishing rules in national and international space policies, and initiating negotiations under the United Nations for effective international cooperation.
Despite the challenges, experts like Krolikowski, Elvis, and Crawford stress the importance of getting it right to preserve the moon’s unique habitats and secrets. With increasing lunar activities, taking action now is crucial.
About our experts
Dr. Alanna Krolikowski is an assistant professor of political science at the Missouri Institute of Technology, specializing in space policy research published in academic journals like space policy and global policy.
martin elvis is an astronomer at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics focusing on space economics, law, and ethics, with research published in Nature and other journals.
Professor Ian Crawford is a planetary scientist at Birkbeck University, known for his lunar science and exploration research published in various scientific journals.
The White House requested NASA to establish a standard time for the moon and other celestial bodies, as the U.S. seeks to lead in space standards amidst growing competition for lunar resources among nations and private entities. The directive was issued by the director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP).
NASA has been tasked with collaborating with other U.S. government agencies to create a plan by the end of 2026 to implement a timekeeping system in space, known as Coordinated Lunar Time (LTC), according to a memo obtained by Reuters.
Variations in gravity on celestial bodies, among other factors, influence the passage of time differently than on Earth. LTC serves as a reference for timing lunar missions that require extreme precision for spacecraft and satellites.
Kevin Coggins, NASA’s space communications and navigation chief, explained, “A clock that works accurately on Earth will run at a different pace on the moon.”
According to the memo from OSTP Director Arati Prabhakar, Earth-based clocks would lose approximately 58.7 microseconds per day for individuals on the Moon, leading to a further time deviation. Periodic fluctuations are also a factor.
Coggins likened the atomic clocks at the U.S. Naval Observatory to the heartbeat of the nation, emphasizing the importance of synchronization in space.
NASA’s Artemis program aims to land astronauts on the moon and establish a scientific base to aid future Mars missions. Numerous companies, spacecraft, and countries are involved in this venture.
Uniform lunar time standards are deemed crucial by OSTP officials to ensure data security between spacecraft and synchronize communications between Earth, lunar assets, and astronauts, preventing errors in mapping and location tracking.
The deployment of an atomic clock on the moon’s surface may be necessary as commercial activities expand to ensure operational coordination, transaction reliability, and logistical efficiency.
The United States, which has previously landed astronauts on the moon, faces competition from other countries like China, Japan, and India with their own lunar exploration plans.
The memo also highlights the importance of defining Coordinated Lunar Time through existing standards bodies and agreements like the Artemis Accords, emphasizing the need for international cooperation in space.
Coordinated Universal Time plays a role in implementing Coordinated Lunar Time, with the United Nations’ International Telecommunication Union defining it as an international standard.
In October, NASA’s Europa Clipper spacecraft will begin a journey to explore Jupiter’s icy moon Europa (imagined above).
NASA has asked METI International, the scientific organization I lead, to leverage our expertise in trying to make contact with extraterrestrial intelligence by creating a symbolic engraved tantalum plate on a spacecraft. We asked them to help us create a message, a greeting from one water world to another.
We helped create two parts of the message. First, we collected a globally representative sample of recordings of water words in 103 languages. Each language is displayed as a waveform on the outside of the panel (pictured above) that protects sensitive scientific equipment.
On the other, inward-looking side (see below), we designed the scientific part of the message. This refers to water in terms of the “water hole,” a frequency band between the hydrogen and hydroxyl (combining to form water) emission lines in the radio spectrum where many of the early searches for intelligence beyond Earth took place. I’m explaining.
Other parts of the internal message include: Drake equation to estimate the number of extraterrestrial civilizations in the galaxy. Microchips containing the names of 2.6 million supporters will be added soon.and Poet Laureate of the United States Ada Limon’s Poem to Europa ends like this. “O second moon, we too / are made of water, of a vast, beckoning ocean… / of the need to call out in the darkness.” The European Clipper will fly to Jupiter in April 2030. We are planning to enter the orbit of
douglas vacochChairman of Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry International
View of the lunar surface taken from the tilted position of the SLIM lander
JAXA
Most landers we send to the Moon will operate for one lunar day, or about two weeks on Earth, until they die from the extreme cold of the lunar night. But Japan’s Smart Lunar Lander (SLIM) has now survived two nights on the moon and continues to send images back to Earth, an amazing feat.
SLIM is Japan’s first lunar lander and becomes the fifth country to land a spacecraft on the lunar surface. When the plane landed on January 19, it was tilted and the solar panels could not provide enough power to continue operating for more than a few hours. After nine days, the sun began to move again, moving across the sky.
But just three Earth days later, the lunar night began. Nighttime temperatures on the moon can drop as low as -133°C (-208°F), potentially damaging the spacecraft’s batteries and electronics. Normally, the lunar lander shuts down on a lunar night and never wakes up again, but it started up again on February 25 as the sun rose above Slim.
This in itself was a surprise. The lander was not specifically designed to withstand lunar nights, and its original mission was scheduled to end at night. So, as night approached again, this seemed to be the end of SLIM.
However, on March 27th, the SLIM official account I posted an image above X has the following caption: “Last night, we received a response from SLIM confirming that SLIM achieved its second success during the night. Last night, the sun was still high and the equipment was hot, so I quickly turned on my navigation camera. It looks like the lander will be able to resume analyzing its surroundings within the next few days.
Its survival is especially surprising because while some spacecraft use radioactive elements to stay warm, SLIM does not. “This is a significant achievement considering we are not using radioisotope heaters,” he says. Haim Benaroya at Rutgers University in New Jersey. “This result is important and impressive, given that this is a major design consideration for electronics (and people) to survive moonlit nights.” SLIM has failed while many other spacecraft have failed. Analyzing how they survived may help us understand how they stay warm on the moon.
Let’s prepare for an amazing event. A stunning lunar eclipse is set to occur on Monday, March 25, 2024, when the Earth aligns between the Sun and the Moon. This alignment causes the Earth’s shadow to fall on the Moon, resulting in a dimmer appearance.
This event coincides with the Festival of Colors, a traditional Hindu celebration marking the arrival of spring and new beginnings. For locations more than 6 hours behind GMT (west of Chicago), the eclipse will start on the night of March 24, 2024.
Curious about where to witness a lunar eclipse, the difference between penumbral and umbral solar eclipses, the possibility of the moon turning red, or the astrological sign the moon will be in during a solar eclipse? Find answers to these questions below.
If you’re excited about clear nights this year, consider planning ahead with our UK full moon calendar and beginner’s guide to astronomy.
When does a lunar eclipse occur?
A penumbral lunar eclipse is scheduled for March 24th to 25th, 2024.
For viewers in the UK, the eclipse will take place a few hours before sunrise, with the moon setting as it reaches its maximum phase. In Bristol, the sunrise will be at 6am GMT on March 25th, placing the eclipse in the early morning sky just before the moon sets.
At 6:03 a.m. GMT, the eclipse will peak while the moon is still above the horizon. The true maximum at 7:12 a.m. won’t be visible as the moon will have set by then.
The moon will start to set at 6:11 a.m. GMT, but its proximity to the horizon and the eclipse phase may dim it before its descent, possibly making it almost invisible.
During a lunar eclipse, the moon will be above the horizon, providing better visibility for observers in the United States.
For Bristol, UK:
A penumbral solar eclipse begins: March 25th, 4:53 a.m. GMT (Moon visible on the horizon)
Maximum eclipse: March 25, 7:12 a.m. GMT (moon below the horizon)
Penumbral eclipse ends: March 25, 9:32 a.m. GMT (moon below the horizon)
For New York City, USA:
A penumbral solar eclipse begins: March 25th 12:53am ET (Moon visible above the horizon)
Maximum eclipse: March 25th, 3:12 a.m. ET (Moon visible on the horizon)
Penumbral eclipse ends: March 25th, 5:32am ET (moon visible on the horizon)
For San Francisco, USA:
A penumbral solar eclipse begins: March 24th, 9:53 PM PST* (Moon visible on the horizon)
Maximum eclipse: March 25th, 12:12am PST (Moon visible on the horizon)
Penumbral eclipse ends: March 25th, 2:32 a.m. PST (Moon visible on the horizon)
* In the United States, clocks changed to daylight saving time on March 10th. In the UK, clocks change to BST on March 31st.
Where can I see the lunar eclipse?
The lunar eclipse on March 25, 2024, will be visible across the United States, South America, Canada, the United Kingdom, Europe, Africa, Asia, Western Australia, and the Arctic and Antarctic regions.
For locations west of Chicago, Illinois, the eclipse will begin on March 24 and last until sunrise.
What exactly is a penumbral eclipse?
All objects cast two shadows when in front of a light source: the dark umbra and the bright penumbra. This remains true when the Earth is between the Sun and the Moon.
During a lunar eclipse, when the moon enters Earth’s penumbra, a partial shadow is formed. Penumbral eclipses are subtle and may be challenging to observe. On Earth, this translates to a gradual dimming of the Moon’s brightness.
During a lunar eclipse, the Earth casts a shadow on the moon. – Photo credit: Getty
During a total lunar eclipse, as the Moon enters Earth’s umbra, it takes on a reddish hue for a more dramatic effect. The intensity of the red color depends on the Moon’s position in Earth’s shadow, appearing blood red in the deepest shadow and pale red in partial shadow.
For future lunar residents, standing on the Moon during a lunar eclipse would reveal Earth blocking the Sun, a scenario where a solar eclipse is witnessed.
What causes a lunar eclipse?
A lunar eclipse occurs when the Earth moves in front of the Sun, casting its shadow on the Moon. Since the Moon reflects sunlight back to us, its visibility during a lunar eclipse is affected when this sunlight is obstructed.
There are different stages to a lunar eclipse: transition through Earth’s penumbra, entry into the dark umbra, return to the penumbra, and finally exit from the shadow completely.
During the upcoming lunar eclipse on March 24-25, 2024, the Moon will stay within the penumbra without entering the central umbra.
What constellation is the moon in?
The penumbral eclipse on March 24-25, 2024, will take place while the Moon is in Virgo, mirroring the placement of Spica, the brightest object in the constellation but slightly to the west.
Will the moon turn red?
Unfortunately, the lunar eclipse on March 24-25, 2024, will not be total, meaning the Moon will not turn red. At most, observant viewers may notice a slight darkening, far less dramatic than during a total lunar eclipse.
Under most circumstances, the lunar eclipse will go unnoticed: “Regrettably, this full moon will only pass through Earth’s darker outer shadow. The lunar eclipse will not be observable at all!” Dr. Darren Baskill, University of Sussex, remarks.
To visualize the distinction, Dr. Baskill suggests placing your hand between a bright light and a surface at night, observing the fainter penumbra surrounding the dark umbra of your hand.
Why do solar eclipses come in pairs?
Observant viewers will notice solar and lunar eclipses occurring successively. After the lunar eclipse on March 24-25, 2024, a solar eclipse will follow on April 8, 2024, promising an even more impressive celestial event.
This phenomenon arises from the alignment of the Sun, Earth, Moon, and their orbital planes.
The Moon’s orbit is slightly inclined compared to Earth’s orbit around the Sun, leading it to pass slightly above or below Earth’s orbital path. Despite this, specific points where the Moon’s orbit intersects Earth’s orbital path—termed “nodes”—exist.
During a solar eclipse season, recurring approximately every six months, alignments near these nodes permit both solar and lunar eclipses to occur. The full moon’s passage through Earth’s shadow creates a lunar eclipse, which is followed by a solar eclipse two weeks later, during the new moon phase, with the Sun, Earth, and Moon aligning perfectly.
When is the next lunar eclipse?
Following March 25, 2024, a partial lunar eclipse is slated for September 18, 2024, preceding a total lunar eclipse about a year later, on March 14, 2025.
Subsequent total lunar eclipses will occur in three consecutive instances, on September 7, 2025, and March 3, 2026.
Here is a list of upcoming lunar eclipses:
March 25, 2024: penumbra
September 18, 2024: Partial
March 14, 2025: total
September 7, 2025: total
March 3, 2026: total
August 28, 2026: Partial
February 20, 2027: penumbra
July 18, 2027: penumbra
August 17, 2027: penumbra
January 12, 2028: Partial
July 6, 2028: Partial
December 31, 2028: total
June 26, 2029: total
December 20, 2029: total
Tips for viewing the lunar eclipse
No special equipment is needed to observe a lunar eclipse, as it is entirely safe to view the moon even during the event. The moon reflects sunlight and lacks dangerous radiation. Therefore, it poses no threat to human eyes.
On a clear night, simply use your eyes to witness the eclipse. A reclining chair may enhance comfort during outdoor viewing. For UK spectators, the eclipse will transpire before dawn, with the moon low on the horizon, possibly visible from indoors if not obstructed by foliage.
To maximize visibility, avoiding areas with high light pollution remains crucial.
Where is the comet located relative to the moon?
About our expert Dr. Darren Baskill
Dr. Darren Baskill is an Outreach Officer and Lecturer in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Sussex. He previously instructed at the Royal Observatory Greenwich and managed the annual Astronomical Photographer of the Year competition.
On September 26, 2022, NASA’s Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission successfully impacted Dimorphos, the natural satellite of the near-Earth binary asteroid Didymos. New numerical simulations show that the DART impact triggered global deformation and resurfacing of Dimorphos.
The asteroid moon Dimorphos was seen by NASA’s DART spacecraft 11 seconds before impact. His DRACO imager aboard DART captured this image from a distance of 68 km (42 miles). This image was the last one to include all dimorphos in the field of view. Image credit: NASA/Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory.
DART was a planetary defense mission that demonstrated the possibility of using kinetic impactors to alter the orbits of asteroids.
The collision was successful and highly effective, resulting in Dimorphos’ orbital period around Didymus being shortened from its original 11 hours and 55 minutes to 33 minutes.
The LICIACube Unit Key Explorer (LUKE) instrument aboard the cubesat took images of the system between 29 seconds and 320 seconds after impact, showing the ejecta stream and other debris that spread for several kilometers from the impact site. revealed a complex pattern.
Furthermore, the dramatic brightening of the Didymos system due to solar illumination of the ejected impact ejecta was observed by ground-based and space-based telescopes for many weeks after the impact.
These three Hubble images capture the breakup of Dimorphos when it was intentionally collided by DART on September 26, 2022. The top panel, taken two hours after impact, shows the ejecta cone (estimated at 1,000 tons of dust). The center frame shows dynamic interactions within the Didymos-Dimorphos binary system that begin to distort the cone of ejecta patterns approximately 17 hours after impact. The most notable structure is a rotating windmill-shaped feature. The windmill is connected to Didymus’s gravitational pull. In the bottom frame, Hubble captures debris being pushed back into the comet-like tail by the pressure of sunlight on tiny dust particles. This spreads out into a column of debris, with the lightest particles traveling fastest and furthest away from the asteroid. The mystery deepens after Hubble recorded the tail splitting into two for several days. Image credit: NASA/ESA/STScI/Jian-Yang Li, PSI/Joseph DePasquale, STScI.
In a new study, University of Bern scientist Sabina Raducan and colleagues use realistic constraints on the mechanical and compositional properties of dimorphos, informed by DART’s initial results, to create a state-of-the-art impact The DART impact was modeled using physical code.
The simulations that best match observations of the impact suggest that Dimorphos is weakly cohesive, similar to asteroids Bennu and Ryugu, and lacks large rocks on its surface.
The researchers suggest that Dimorphos may be a pile of debris formed by the rotational shedding and re-accumulation of material ejected from Didymos.
Their model also suggests that DART’s impact may not have created an impact crater, but instead may have changed the shape of the moon as a whole, a process known as global deformation, which could have been caused by material from within. It also indicates that it may have caused the resurfacing of Dimorphos.
The discovery provides further insight into the formation and characteristics of binary asteroids and could have implications for future exploration, including ESA’s Hera mission and asteroid deflection efforts.
“ESA’s future Hera mission may discover reformed asteroids rather than well-defined craters,” the authors concluded.
their paper It was published in the magazine natural astronomy.
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SD Raducan other. Physical properties of the asteroid Dimorphos obtained from the DART impact. Nat Astron, published online on February 26, 2024. doi: 10.1038/s41550-024-02200-3
Many years ago, at that time david kipping When he lived in London, he would walk home through the city and look up at the moon. For astronomers, its dimly glowing presence was a nightly source of inspiration. “It reminded us that satellites are waiting for us around exoplanets,” he says. “It made sense that we should look for them.”
It would be exciting to discover an exomoon, a natural satellite of a world outside our solar system. First, the moon may play a key role in determining the habitability of its host planet by dampening its wobble and promoting a stable climate, in the same way it did for Earth. there is. There may also be strange and wonderful configurations, such as a lunar ring or a moon with its own moon. But the most interesting thing is that some of them may be more suitable for life than exoplanets.
Kipping, now at Cornell University in New York, is part of a small community of astronomers exploring solar moons. At least statistics are on your side. About 5,500 exoplanets have been discovered so far, some of which may have dozens of moons. The problem is that it’s not easy to prove its existence. Two previous sightings of Kipping have been hotly debated.
But now there’s hope on the horizon, with many new ways to explore these objects, from monitoring rogue planets that have abandoned their stars to monitoring exoplanets’ gravitational wobbles. Armed with these new technologies, and new telescopes also in development, the Moon will…
A privately built spacecraft on the moon has sent back new photos from the lunar surface. The images captured the spacecraft’s much-lauded descent and the moment it rolled over shortly after landing.
The Odysseus lander, built by Houston-based Intuitive Machines, touched down on the moon on February 22, making it the first commercial ship to reach the moon’s surface and the first U.S. ship to reach the moon in more than 50 years. It made history as a spaceship.
The Odysseus Lunar Module took this image about 35 seconds after it rolled over on its approach to the landing site. Intuitive machine via AP
The next day, Intuitive Machines announced that Odysseus had rolled over as it landed near a crater called Malapart A near the moon’s south pole. Company officials said the 14-foot-tall lander was operational, but part of the rover’s antenna was pointing toward the ground, limiting its ability to communicate with flight controllers on Earth. Ta.
with updateMondayIntuitive Machines said it was continuing to communicate with the spacecraft, adding that flight controllers “will collect data until the lander’s solar panels are no longer exposed to light.”
Company officials said they expect to be able to communicate with Odysseus until Tuesday morning, based on the positions of the Earth and the moon. The lander was originally expected to spend about a week collecting data on the lunar surface before the lunar night begins and the spacecraft powers down.
In its latest update, the company announced that Odysseus’ instruments detected nine safe landing sites within the target zone near the moon’s south pole. The moon’s south pole region has long intrigued scientists because water ice is thought to be relatively abundant in permanently shadowed craters.
The upcoming full moon in February 2024, known as the snow moon, will be the second one of the year. Despite being a micromoon this month, it signifies the end of winter and the coming of spring.
Wondering when is the best time to witness this full snow moon in the UK? How close is the micromoon? And the current constellation of the moon? Here is everything you need to know about the full moon in February 2024.
If you want to enjoy a clear night sky, explore our beginner’s guide to astronomy. To get familiar with some unique constellations, this guide is the perfect starting point.
Interested in capturing beautiful moon photos? Check out our practical moon photography guide that is filled with expert advice from astrophotographers and even BBC Night Sky presenter Pete Lawrence. Whether you are a beginner or an advanced user, we have tutorials to suit your needs.
When will we see the snow moon in 2024?
If the skies are clear, the snow moon will be visible in the early morning and evening on February 24, 2024, across the UK, US, and other parts of the world.
The peak illumination of the full moon in February will happen at 12:30 PM GMT. For viewers in the UK, this means that the moon will be fully illuminated during the day when it is below the horizon. However, it will still appear “full” when it rises at night and for a few days after.
In London, the Snow Moon will rise in the east-northeast on February 24 at 5:27pm GMT and set in the west-northwest at 7:32 a.m. on February 25th.
In New York, the Snow Moon will rise in the east-northeast on February 24 at 5:55 pm ET and set in the western sky at 7:18 am on February 25th.
In Seattle, the Snow Moon will rise in the east-northeast on February 24 at 6:07 pm PST and set in the west at 7:40 a.m. on February 25th.
What’s unique about the 2024 Snow Moon?
This year’s Snow Moon is special for two reasons. First, it falls on the day before the moon reaches its apogee, making it the smallest full moon of the year. Secondly, it coincides with the Lunar New Year celebrations, including the Lantern Festival.
On February 24th, National Tortilla Day is also celebrated in the US, giving you another reason to toast the full moon with chips and dip.
When is the best time to view the 2024 Snow Moon?
The best time to observe the snow moon is in the evening of February 24th, just after sunrise, or before moonset on the morning of February 24th. The moon will be closest to full illumination and low on the horizon in both cases.
In London, the moon will set at 7:21 a.m. GMT on the morning of February 24th, offering a picturesque sight low on the horizon. And if you wait until evening, the moon will rise at 5:27pm GMT on February 24th, just after sunset.
The Earth’s counterclockwise rotation means that the moon will appear to move across the sky from left to right in the Northern Hemisphere and from right to left in the Southern Hemisphere at a rate of 15 degrees per hour.
Why is February’s full moon called the snow moon?
February is one of the coldest months of the year in the Northern Hemisphere due to the cooling effects of winter and the sun’s lower angle. The snow moon gets its name from the significant snowfall experienced in the US, Canada, and Europe during this time.
What constellation is the moon in?
On February 22nd, the Moon will be in Cancer, and by the full moon, it will have moved into Leo, situated between Regulus and Keltan. Three days later, the moon will shift to Virgo, followed by Libra from March 1st.
Is the snow moon a supermoon?
No, the February 2024 snow moon is not a supermoon, as it will be a micromoon. Supermoons occur when the moon is closest to Earth, known as perigee, making it appear larger and brighter in the sky.
How far away is the moon?
During apogee on February 25, the moon will be 406,312 km (252,470 miles) away from Earth, making it the smallest full moon of 2024. The farthest point of the moon from Earth will be on October 2, 2024, at 406,516 km (252,597 miles) during a new moon.
What causes a full moon?
A full moon occurs when the side facing Earth is fully illuminated by the sun, as the Earth is positioned between the Sun and the Moon. This alignment, known as “syzygy,” only lasts for a moment but signifies a full moon in the lunar cycle.
The moon’s cycle lasts about 29.53 days, with the full moon marking the midpoint. The sun and moon balance each other during a full moon, with the moon appearing full all night but technically only being “full” for a brief moment.
Uranus (left) and Neptune (right) have several more moons
NASA, ESA, Mark Showalter (SETI Institute), Amy Simon (NASA-GSFC), Andrew I. Hsu, Michael H. Wong (University of California, Berkeley)
Astronomers have discovered new moons around Uranus and Neptune for the first time in 10 years. These are the faintest moons ever discovered orbiting a planet, confirming a long-held idea about moons in the outer solar system.
Scott Shepherd from the Carnegie Institution for Science in Washington, D.C., discovered these moons using the Magellan Telescope in Chile and confirmed them using several other large telescopes around the world. “We looked about four times deeper than anyone has ever looked,” Shepherd said. “These satellites are at the edge of our capabilities. They’re just faint, faint points of light.”
Typically, when looking for the moon, you can only get a maximum exposure of about 5 minutes before it becomes overexposed and the moon’s movement renders it useless. Shepard and his team got around this problem by taking many of these five-minute images in quick succession, observing them for hours, and then combining the darker parts of the images. This allowed them to find dim points of light shining from the faintest moons ever discovered, as well as the smallest moons ever discovered around each planet.
The new moon around Uranus is tentatively named S/2023 U1, but will eventually be given the name of a Shakespearean character, along with the planet’s other moons. It is only about 8 kilometers in diameter and orbits once every 680 Earth days.
One of the new moons around Neptune is called S/2021 N1, and we await its official name from Greek mythology. With a diameter of about 14 kilometers, it takes about 27 Earth years to orbit the planet, making it the farthest moon from its host planet ever discovered. This is also the darkest moon ever discovered.
Discovery image of Uranus’ new moon S/2023 U1 with scattered light from Uranus and trails from background stars
Scott S. Shepherd/Carnegie Institution for Science
The brighter, larger moon discovered orbiting Neptune is called S/2002 N5. As its name suggests, this satellite was first discovered more than 20 years before, but was lost before astronomers could confirm its orbit. “The moon can get lost really easily,” Shepard says. “Basically, you need really good weather, your telescopes need to work perfectly, and everything needs to go well to detect these satellites.” If something goes wrong and a planned observation is lost, the satellite moves out of orbit and becomes very difficult to find again.
Each of the three new moons has an orbit similar to the other two moons in its planetary system, and these fellow travelers form small groups that orbit together. This means that each of these groups likely formed together when larger moons broke up during the early solar system chaos.
“Until now, it was unclear whether Uranus and Neptune had a group of exomoons like Jupiter and Saturn,” Shepard said. “We believe these are debris from satellites that were once much larger, but we’ll probably find many more smaller satellites.” Unfortunately, we’re reaching the limits of what we can discover with current technology, he says it may take even longer before these smaller moons are discovered around Uranus and Neptune.
A robotic spacecraft made history Thursday by becoming the first civilian spacecraft to land on the moon and the first U.S. vehicle to accomplish the feat in more than 50 years.
The lander, built by Intuitive Machines, touched down on the moon around 6:23 p.m. ET after overcoming a late-stage malfunction with its onboard laser equipment. The Nova-C lander, nicknamed Odysseus, was the first American spacecraft to reach the moon’s surface since the Apollo 17 mission in 1972.
“Houston, Odysseus has found a new home,” Tim Crane, the company’s chief technology officer, radioed back from the control room as employees cheered and celebrated.
It took several minutes to confirm the landing. As expected, mission controllers lost contact with the spacecraft as it made its final descent.
The company said it was able to detect a weak signal from one of Odysseus’ antennas, but needed more data to determine how the spacecraft landed and in what conditions. About two hours later, the team received good news.
“After troubleshooting communications, flight controllers confirmed that Odysseus was upright and beginning to transmit data,” Intuitive Machines said. mentioned in the X update. “Currently, we are working on downlinking the first images from the lunar surface.”
Intuitive Machines CEO Stephen Altemus called the landing an “outstanding effort” and praised the entire team. “I know this was a blow, but we’re on the ground and communicating. Welcome to the moon,” Artemus said.
NASA Administrator Bill Nelson also congratulated Intuitive Machines on their landing, calling the milestone a “victory.”
“Odysseus took the moon,” Nelson said in a video message played during a live broadcast of the event. “This feat is a huge step forward for all humanity.”
Odysseus was launched into space on February 15th aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. The 14-foot-tall lander then traveled more than 620,000 miles over six days to reach the moon.
The landing time was adjusted several times on Thursday as Intuitive Machines adjusted the spacecraft’s orbit around the moon.
When Odysseus descended to the moon’s surface, he targeted a landing site near a crater called Malapart A, near the moon’s south pole. The moon’s south polar region has long intrigued scientists because water ice is thought to be relatively abundant in the region’s permanently shadowed craters. .
Odysseus travels with a combination of commercial cargo and NASA scientific equipment. The lander is expected to spend about a week collecting data on the lunar surface before lunar night begins and the spacecraft powers down.
About an hour before landing, the company also scrambled to resolve a problem with its laser equipment, which is designed to help the rover assess the lunar surface terrain and find a safe, non-hazardous landing site. . Odysseus’s laser rangefinder was inoperable, but a sensor from NASA’s scientific instruments aboard the lander was reused.
The mission is part of the Commercial Lunar Landing Services Program, established by NASA to help private companies develop lunar landers. NASA will eventually hire these companies to transport cargo and scientific equipment to the moon’s surface as part of the agency’s broader ambitions to return astronauts to the moon.
NASA awarded Intuitive Machines $118 million to perform the moon landing.
Last month, another company tried unsuccessfully to send a lander to the moon under the same NASA program. The spacecraft, built by Pittsburgh-based Astrobotic Technology, suffered a catastrophic failure shortly after launch, forcing the company to abort the entire mission.
In addition to being the first commercial spacecraft on the moon, Odysseus also joined an elite club. To date, only the space agencies of the United States, the former Soviet Union, China, India, and Japan have successfully made a controlled or “soft landing” on the moon. Moon.
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