A new study has shown that the Moon once had an atmosphere

2017-10-09 10:43

A new study has shown that the Moon once had an atmosphere
A new study by NASA showed that 3-4 billion years ago the Month was the atmosphere. IT was created by intense volcanic eruption, which occurred on the satellite at the time.

Sign up for news “UkrMedia” in Facebook or Twitter

Through a powerful volcanic eruption of gases produced faster and accumulated over the surface of the satellite, because such a number could not immediately fly into space. The traces of these eruptions can be seen from the Ground: the surface of dark volcanic basalt that fill a huge space impact basins, which are called lunar seas. These seas formed when the inner part of the Month was hot and created plumes of magma. They sometimes struck the moon’s surface and flowed for hundreds of kilometers. Analysis of samples from Apollo found that the magma contained such substances as carbon monoxide, components for water, sulfur and other volatile substances.

The new study was conducted by Dr. Debra Ndham (scientific employee of the space flight Center, NASA) and Dr. David Kring (senior researcher LPI). Scientists were able to calculate the amount of gases that rose above the surface of the moon. The scientists also demonstrated how the vapours accumulated around the moon and formed a transitional atmosphere. Most tight it was during the peak of volcanic activity of the moon about 3.5 billion years ago. After the formation of the atmosphere existed about 70 million years until it flew into space.

The studied samples were collected in pools of Clear sea and sea of Rains. They were filled with lava about 3.5 and 3.8 billion years ago. These eruptions have given powerful impulses for the formation of huge amount of gas. Some of them went to the lunar poles, where it probably remained in the form of ice. As noted by Dr. David Kring:

“This work fundamentally changes our views for the month of airless rocky body to body, which was surrounded by an atmosphere more broad than the one that surrounds Mars today.”

When the moon had an atmosphere, it was 3 times closer to the Earth than today and looked three times more in the sky!

This discovery is important for the future of the colonization of the moon. Volatile agents detained in the ice deposits at the poles of the satellite, can be used to provide astronauts with fuel and air. The results of the study were published in the journals Earth and Planetary Science Letters.