Moon is just a chunk of the Earth and not mainly part of an ancient planet as previously thought, scientists claim
Scientists assert that rather than being primarily a component of an old planet as previously believed, the moon is simply a portion of the Earth.
Our satellite was thought to have been created when the hypothetical body Theia struck our planet 4.5 billion years ago, according to experts.
It was thought that the moon was formed by the binding of molten debris from the crash.
However, according to a recent study, it is mainly composed of debris that was spit out from the Earth’s mantle, which is the layer beneath the crust and where impact temperatures can reach 3,700C.
Rock samples from the Earth and the moon were compared by researchers at the University of Gttingen in Germany.
They deduced that the satellite must have been made completely of the same material when Theia struck because of the resemblance.
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One hypothesis, according to study lead Professor Andreas Pack, is that Theia struck the early Earth like a metallic cannonball after losing its rocky mantle in previous impacts.
If this were true, the Moon would have formed from material that was expelled from the Earth’s mantle, and Theia would now be a component of the Earth’s core.
This would account for the Earth and Moon’s similar compositions.
According to them, the study has also called into question the idea that water didn’t come to Earth until after the moon created.