Tag: South Pole–Aitken basin
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Did a colossal asteroid reshape the Moon from the inside? New lunar rocks hint at a giant impact
Introduction: A clue from lunar rocks New analysis of basaltic rock samples returned to Earth from the Moon’s South Pole–Aitken Basin by China’s Chang’e 6 mission is stirring debate in planetary science. An unusual ratio of potassium isotopes in these rocks points to a dramatic event early in the Moon’s history — a colossal asteroid…
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Potassium Isotopes Reveal Lunar Giant-Impact Origin
Introduction: A Clue from the Moon’s Far Side In a breakthrough that may rewrite parts of the Moon’s early history, scientists analyzing basalt samples returned by China’s Chang’e 6 mission have detected an unusual ratio of potassium isotopes. The finding adds a compelling line of evidence that a colossal asteroid impact—an event of staggering scale—shaped…
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Lunar Deep Dive: What Potassium Clues Reveal About the Moon’s Interior and the Giant Impact That Shaped It
New Clues from the Moon’s South Pole–Aitken Basin The Moon continues to reveal its turbulent past through tiny chemical fingerprints. Recent analyses of basaltic rock samples collected by China’s Chang’e 6 mission, returned to Earth, show an unusual ratio of potassium isotopes. This discovery adds weight to a striking theory: a colossal asteroid impact may…
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What’s Odd About the Moon’s Largest Crater—and Why Artemis Astronauts Are Headed There
Introduction: A Giant Crater That Holds Inside Secrets The Moon’s far side hosts the Solar System’s largest known impact basin: the South Pole-Aitken (SPA) basin. Spanning roughly 1,930 kilometers north-south and about 1,600 kilometers east-west, this ancient scar on the Moon’s crust formed around 4.3 billion years ago when a colossal asteroid struck the young…
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What the Moon’s Largest Crater Reveals About Its Hidden Past—and Artemis’ Next Destination
Unraveling a Moonwired Mystery: A Basin That Changes Our View The Moon is not a perfectly uniform little world orbiting Earth. Its far side hosts the largest known impact basin in the Solar System—the South Pole-Aitken (SPA) basin. Spanning roughly 1,930 kilometers from north to south and about 1,600 kilometers east to west, the SPA…
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Moon’s Largest Crater Reveals Hidden Clues as Artemis Eyes South Pole-Aitken
Understanding the Moon’s Hidden History The Moon wobbles through space in a quiet duet with Earth: it spins on its axis in roughly the same time it takes to orbit our planet, a phenomenon known as synchronous rotation. This lock means we always see the same face, while the far side remains largely mysterious to…
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Moon SPA Basin Reimagined: New Clues on the Largest Crater
New View of the Moon’s Largest Crater New research published in Nature is prompting scientists to rethink how the Moon’s largest known impact basin, the South Pole-Aitken (SPA) basin, formed. Measuring more than 1,200 miles across, the SPA has long been a focal point for understanding the Moon’s early history. The latest analysis argues that…
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A New Take on the Moon’s Largest Crater: Could SPA’s Shape Rewrite Lunar History?
A fresh perspective on the Moon’s biggest crater For decades, the South Pole-Aitken (SPA) basin has stood as a cornerstone of lunar geology. Spanning more than 1,200 miles across, it is the Moon’s largest known impact feature and a key target for NASA’s Artemis program. A new paper published in Nature challenges a long-held assumption:…
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Giant northern asteroid crash reshaped the Moon and left radioactive clues, study finds
The Moon’s oldest wound may trace back to a northern strike Billions of years ago, a colossal asteroid plowed into the Moon, carving out the South Pole–Aitken basin—the solar system’s biggest and oldest known impact site. A new study led by planetary scientist Jeffrey Andrews-Hanna of the University of Arizona, published in Nature, argues that…
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Did a Northern Asteroid Crash Make the Moon Radioactive? New Findings Reframe Lunar History
Big Impact, Big Consequences: Rethinking the Moon’s oldest scar For decades, scientists have grappled with the South Pole–Aitken basin, the Moon’s colossal imprint that stretches nearly 2,000 kilometres across. A landmark study led by planetary scientist Jeffrey Andrews-Hanna from the University of Arizona, published in Nature, offers a fresh view: the asteroid that carved this…