Thursday, 28 March 2024

Random Thread: October 2014

gravity maps of the moon

NASA’s Gravity Recovery and Lunar Interior Laboratory, a satellite orbiting the moon, has discovered what really caused the big, dark lunar feature called Oceanus Procellarum, the Ocean of Storms. Most scientists thought it had been blasted out by an ancient asteroid collision. But closer study shows that the feature is actually a series of lava-flooded rift valleys, like the cracks that appear where continents are pulling apart on Earth. The discovery shows that the moon used to be a much more active and violent place than experts had thought. (The pictures, from right to left, show the moon, its topography, and gravity gradients.)

Speaking of the moon, a total lunar eclipse is coming up on the morning of October 8. Might be worth a look if you’re up and about.

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