Far from perfectly round, the moon has a strange shape, with a plateau bulge on the side facing the Earth and other protrusions on the side away. It's a puzzle that makes scientists enthralled.
In theory, supposed to be shaped like a ball in a good, because it is formed by the rotation since its creation 4.4 billion years ago. The round shape is already known for a long time by being on Earth when looking at the full moon.
But if we can see the moon from different angles, then the moon will look a bit like a lemon, according to astronomers. High land on the face of the moon has peaks that lead to the earth.
How did they get there?
The answer - according to research published in the journal Nature-- lies in the strong gravitational force emanating from the earth, during the month is still young and very hot temperatures.
In theory, supposed to be shaped like a ball in a good, because it is formed by the rotation since its creation 4.4 billion years ago. The round shape is already known for a long time by being on Earth when looking at the full moon.
But if we can see the moon from different angles, then the moon will look a bit like a lemon, according to astronomers. High land on the face of the moon has peaks that lead to the earth.
How did they get there?
The answer - according to research published in the journal Nature-- lies in the strong gravitational force emanating from the earth, during the month is still young and very hot temperatures.
[Note History]
Neil Armstrong - The Pioneers Month
Record History
Dated July 21, 1969 at 02:56 UTC, Neil Armstrong set foot on the moon. Commander of the Apollo 11 mission was the first person to walk on another celestial body. The moon landing was witnessed by about half a billion people around the world through live TV broadcast.
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Blob of molten rock was originally months before starting to cool and harden. Just as the moon's gravity causes the ocean tides on earth, of the earth's gravity to form the moon's surface. This force presses and stretches the moon. This process causes heat from friction, so the warm months still semi-liquid. At the same time, the surface began to cool.
The heat of this dynamic process is not universally distributed, and the result can be seen on the outside in the form: "The differences in warming in different regions contribute to most forms of months," said Ian Garrick-Bethell, an astrophysicist at the University of California, in Santa Cruz.
"Then, the outer moon cools and solidifies in the shape of the curve." Moon shape is also slightly formed by rotation. Tidal forces make little moon shaped like a lemon, after the crust cooled, according to researchers.
Lunar shape
In asymmetric shape may be the key to understanding some peculiar geological events, Garrick-Bethell said. "For example, only one side of the moon has a vast volcanic plains, known as maria," he said. "Plain is a dark part of the month when you look at night. Other side, that you can not see without fly spacecraft, mostly without volcanic plains."
An important part of modeling is to analyze the shape of months without hollow body and a giant crater - which is the impact of the blow giant space rocks when the month is still young. Crater on the moon has long made an effort to explain the complicated shapes months. But, said Garrick-Bethell, craters do not need to be taken into account in the calculation of how the moon formed, because the crater created after cooling and freezing.
Neil Armstrong - The Pioneers Month
Record History
Dated July 21, 1969 at 02:56 UTC, Neil Armstrong set foot on the moon. Commander of the Apollo 11 mission was the first person to walk on another celestial body. The moon landing was witnessed by about half a billion people around the world through live TV broadcast.
123456789
Blob of molten rock was originally months before starting to cool and harden. Just as the moon's gravity causes the ocean tides on earth, of the earth's gravity to form the moon's surface. This force presses and stretches the moon. This process causes heat from friction, so the warm months still semi-liquid. At the same time, the surface began to cool.
The heat of this dynamic process is not universally distributed, and the result can be seen on the outside in the form: "The differences in warming in different regions contribute to most forms of months," said Ian Garrick-Bethell, an astrophysicist at the University of California, in Santa Cruz.
"Then, the outer moon cools and solidifies in the shape of the curve." Moon shape is also slightly formed by rotation. Tidal forces make little moon shaped like a lemon, after the crust cooled, according to researchers.
Lunar shape
In asymmetric shape may be the key to understanding some peculiar geological events, Garrick-Bethell said. "For example, only one side of the moon has a vast volcanic plains, known as maria," he said. "Plain is a dark part of the month when you look at night. Other side, that you can not see without fly spacecraft, mostly without volcanic plains."
An important part of modeling is to analyze the shape of months without hollow body and a giant crater - which is the impact of the blow giant space rocks when the month is still young. Crater on the moon has long made an effort to explain the complicated shapes months. But, said Garrick-Bethell, craters do not need to be taken into account in the calculation of how the moon formed, because the crater created after cooling and freezing.
