Scientists solve age-old mystery about the moon

The moon has held a secret for decades, and scientists are closer than ever to cracking it.

New research has focused on the ‘exosphere’ of thin gases that cling to the celestial body and form a type of atmosphere around it.

The nature of this exosphere has baffled experts for decades, and until now researchers have always been unsure as to exactly why it is there. Because, in simple terms, it shouldn’t really exist at all due to the moon's lack of magnetic field.

Now though, new research might have cleared up the mystery of its existence.

A study published in Science Advances features new findings from Nicole Nie, a geochemist from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

"We give a definitive answer that meteorite impact vaporization is the dominant process that creates the lunar atmosphere,” Nie said.

Essentially, the study puts forward that tiny micrometeorites are disturbing lunar dust by kicking up atoms around the surface of the moon, maintaining its exosphere.

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"The Moon is close to 4.5 billion years old, and through that time the surface has been continuously bombarded by meteorites. We show that eventually, a thin atmosphere reaches a steady state because it's being continuously replenished by small impacts all over the Moon,” Nie continued.

The research was based upon data modelling from a lunar orbiter which was operational between 2013 and 2014 called the Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE). However, Nie also said that further research was required.

"Based on LADEE's data, it seemed both processes are playing a role. For instance, it showed that during meteorite showers, you see more atoms in the atmosphere, meaning impacts have an effect. But it also showed that when the Moon is shielded from the Sun, such as during an eclipse, there are also changes in the atmosphere's atoms, meaning the Sun also has an impact. So, the results were not clear or quantitative."

It comes after scientists uncovered billions of years’ worth of secrets buried beneath the surface of the moon.

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