The Moon has always been known to have a mysterious effect on vast things like the ocean’s movement. Who knew the crash of comets affected the moon’s appearance so greatly? On the topic of our one and only Moon, you’ll definitely want to check out this beautiful Strawberry Moon.
Researchers from Brown University — Providence, R.I. — recently discovered that the mysterious swirls all over the Moon may have been caused by crashing comets. This wasn’t an instantaneous thing. Crashing comets over the course of the last 100 million years — how’s that for the opposite of instant gratification?
How Comets Alter the Appearance of the Moon
They examined the dynamics of the swirls on the Moon using the latest in computer models to create simulations of the Moon’s groundwork. The simulations gave way to information about how comet impacts could very possibly explain the mysterious features — particularly the swirls on the Moon. This hypothesis might even explain the presence of magnetic anomalies near those swirls. The reason for this is that comet impacts could cause the melting away of some particles of the Moon’s surface. The Moon is iron-rich, so of course, the melted away particles would be too. As those particles are iron-rich, after impact, these particles start to melt, and then finally cool. In the middle of this process, they are imprinted with whatever magnetic field is present at the time of this cosmic interaction.
Patterns of Swirls on The Moon Long-Debated
The exact origins of the strange swirls on the Moon have long been pondered by astronomical and cosmological researchers. As far as the eye can see, the Moon has always had its pattern of strange, bright swirls, but there hadn’t really been a definitive answer. For years, scientists have tried to tie their conclusions about the Moon’s shapes with theories regarding the Moon’s interior magnetism, or Moon dirt and solar wind interactions, but these theories have left the community wanting.
This new comet collision theory is well-backed by the state-of-the-art computer simulation models. The case for cometary collisions is strong because the simulations show that impacts along the Moon’s groundwork would cause its icy core to blow away small particles on top of it and create the swirls on the Moon. The simulation show that the impacted surface can feasibly create swirling that might extend from the impact point for long distances.
On the topic of our one and only Moon: you’ll definitely want to check out this beautiful Strawberry Moon.
