The Moon is the closest celestial body to our
planet. So it's no wonder that since ancient times, astronomers have been fascinated with
Earth's one and only natural satellite. Today, modern technology allows scientists to explore
the lunar surface from afar. And some of their findings are outright baffling. Like, what
is that huge and mysterious metal mass that’s just been discovered in one of the Moon's
craters? Hmmm.
"Mysterious hunk," "anomalous clump," or simply "mass" - these are all the nicknames that
I have in common with this strange object, (ha ha) bestowed in the last couple of months
since its discovery in April 2019. So far, scientists have been struggling to explain
where this giant lump of unidentified material came from or what it really is. But let me
back up, and we’ll start from the beginning…
On the far side of the Moon, you’ll find one of the largest and oldest impact craters
in our Solar System: the South Pole-Aitken basin. Unfortunately, from here on Earth,
you can only see its outer rim, which looks like a huge chain of mountains. So, if you
want to see the whole crater with your own eyes, you’ll need to gear up and head to
the moon yourself! On the bright side (which we are), the trip would be worth your time!
I bet you'd be awestruck by a ginormous 8-mile-deep dent stretching for more than 1,500 miles
in diameter and covering a quarter of the Moon's surface! Astronomers are sure that
this crater appeared when an asteroid collided with the Moon around 4 billion years ago.
And now, imagine a gigantic chunk of metal almost the size of West Virginia. As for its
weight in pounds, all I’ll say is that this number has a string of 17 zeros behind it.
So, yeah, whatever it is, it’s huuuge . And this mysterious metallic mass is buried
180 miles under the Moon's surface, somewhere in the middle of the South Pole-Aitken basin.
Ok, if it’s so deep underground on a part of the moon you can’t even see from Earth,
how did scientists manage to spot this mass? Well, we’ve got technology to thank for
that! After GRAIL (which stands for NASA's “Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory”
mission) had gathered a bunch of data on our natural satellite, astronomers started to
examine this information.
That’s when one thing confused them the most. In one place on the Moon's surface (yep,
it was that South Pole-Aitken basin), they saw a weird change in gravity. After studying
this unexpected phenomenon a bit more, they concluded that there was a mysterious huge
something weighing down the basin floor.
So far, researchers haven't yet figured out the origin of the bizarre lump, but there
are several theories. One of them claims that the finding is a chunk of dense oxides, which
likely appeared when the Moon was just taking the shape it has now. At that time, our little
satellite was still covered with ancient oceans of magma. This humungous lump could’ve formed
at the final stages of its cooling.
However, most scientists support another theory that the puzzling mass is a part of the monstrosity
that once created the very South Pole-Aitken basin itself! Since the thing is metallic,
it could be the iron-nickel core of the asteroid (or whatever it was) that collided with the
Moon several billion years ago.
In any case, the Moon is good at keeping its secrets, and researchers still haven't come
to any final conclusion. The only obvious thing is that the basin is a great natural
laboratory where scientists can study disastrous impact events. And the "anomalous clump" might
tell us a lot more about both the Moon and the history of the Universe overall!
But wait, did you think that the massive chunk of metal hiding deep under the Moon’s surface
is the only lunar mystery out there? Well, hang tight because I’ve got plenty more!
- One phenomenon has been perplexing astronomers for decades (since the 1950s, to be precise),
and that's random flashes of light coming from the surface of the Moon. They even got
their own fancy nickname: "transient lunar phenomena." The flashes have no consistent
pattern and occur totally at random. Sometimes astronomers observe them several times a week,
and at other times, the flashes might disappear for months. Some of them last just a couple
minutes, while others have gone on for hours! Explanations vary from likely moonquakes and
meteors to the more bizarre “alien” theories. But, again, the mystery is yet to be solved.
The good thing is that a new telescope might shed light on these strange flashes. It’ll
be pointing at the Moon's surface 24/7, recording videos and taking photos as soon as the phenomenon
occurs. The telescope has been set up in an observatory in Spain since the weather conditions
there are best for observing the Moon.
Now, a day before Apollo 11 landed on the lunar surface in 1969, the mission’s Command
Module Pilot Michael Collins reported that one area of the Moon was more illuminated
than the surrounding landscape. He added that it looked as if that region had fluorescence
to it. The astronauts could clearly see a crater, and they noticed that the area around
it was weirdly bright. Is this phenomenon connected with the mysterious lunar flashes?
Scientists are still at a loss to this day.
- Speaking of Apollo 11, the astronauts had a lot of problems with the Moon's dust. Due
to its unique texture, as well as to the low gravity, this dust clung to everything, even
to the point of affecting the astronauts’ helmet visors and eroding their boots! It
turns out that lunar dust is dangerous for people. Its particles are incredibly sharp,
and when breathed in, they can damage the brain and lungs beyond repair!
- Small quakes often happen on the Moon, and they haven’t been put down to one cause
either. Some scientists believe that they’re due to the gravitational pull our planet has
on its natural satellite. Others claim that when the Moon's crust moves, heats up, or
gets hit by meteorites, the seismic vibrations occur. Whatever the reason, when a moonquake
happens several miles beneath the surface, it leaves ruptures and cracks that astronomers
have even been able to record.
- and there’s this: There might be a labyrinth of lava tunnels on the Moon. Astronomers have
discovered a massive cave under the lunar surface thanks to some topography data they
recently got back. Around 30 miles long and 60 miles wide, the giant Moon cave might be
the result of volcanic activity that happened there about 3 billion years ago. Streams of
lava hardened, creating a thick hard crust on the outside. But inside, it kept flowing,
melting the rock and creating tunnels and caves. Countless small pits in the Moon's
surface seem to be openings to these underground labyrinths. If this theory gets confirmed,
the tunnels could serve as a convenient location for manned space missions as well as a much-needed
water source for astronauts!
- If you ever set foot on the Moon, you'll immediately notice that your shadow is much
darker than it is on Earth. But this isn’t an unsolved mystery. On our planet, the atmosphere
scatters light in such a way that even objects that aren’t in direct sunlight are still
well-lit and visible. But there is no air to scatter light on the Moon, so shadows are
extremely dark and sunlit areas are exceptionally bright.
- Now don’t feel bad, but The Moon is abandoning us! Every year, its orbit moves about an inch
and a half away from our planet. At this rate, in 500 million years, the Moon will be 14,600
miles further from Earth than it is now!
- Despite all appearances, the Moon isn't a perfect sphere. It might look like that
when you glance at it hanging up there in the night sky. But, in fact, the Moon is shaped
like an egg! Scientists have spent years trying to understand what forces helped mold such
an unusual form. One of the theories is that the Moon’s center of mass is a bit closer
to Earth than its geometric center, which could’ve stretched it out to its egg-like
shape. Or it could have been laid by a giant space chicken. Or not.
- And finally, how about this: some scientists don't even agree that the Moon is Earth's
satellite! First, being around one-fourth the size of our planet, the crater-pocked
thing is just too big to be our moon. Besides, it’d technically be incorrect to say that
the Moon orbits the Earth. In fact, the dynamic duo sort of orbit each other, kind of like
when two people hold hands and spin around together. But since the barycenter (which,
in astronomy, is the point a celestial object orbits around) is located within the Earth,
we feel as if the Moon is orbiting our planet!
Have you heard about any other secrets the Moon is keeping from us? Let me know down
in the comments! If you learned something new today, then give this video a like and
share it with a friend. But – hey! – don't go moonwalking just
yet! We have over 2,000 cool videos for you to check out. All you have to do is pick the
left or right video, click on it, and enjoy! Stay on the Bright Side of life!