What type of rocks form the mare on the Moon?
Basalt: The Mare Rock Basalt is a fine-grained, dark-colored volcanic rock. It is rich in iron, magnesium, and plagioclase feldspar, a common rock-forming mineral on Earth. The dark plains on the Moon are made up largely of basalts.
How were craters formed on the Moon?
These craters formed when rocks or comets from space smashed into the surface of the Moon. The impact was so powerful that it pulverized the ground – creating what we call regolith – and sprayed it out to form those ejecta rays.
How are highlands formed on the Moon?
The Indian mission through the Moon mineralogy mapper has offered proof that the Moon's highlands were formed by the eruption of a hot liquid inside the Moon's surface popularly known as magma.
How did mare Crisium form?
Mare Crisium, or the Sea of Crisis, is an exceptional formation. It is actually a lunar basin, a large area of that was flooded by the impact of an asteroid billions of years ago. The flooded lava floor is oval in shape. The east-west direction is 375 miles; the north-south direction is 345 miles.
What are the holes in the Moon called?
Craters on the Moon are caused by asteroids and meteorites colliding with the lunar surface. The Moon's surface is covered with thousands of craters.
Why does the Moon have holes?
Craters are the most common surface features on many solid planets and moons—Mercury and our Moon are covered with craters. This portion of the Moon is covered by numerous circular holes. These are impact craters, each of which was formed when an asteroid or comet collided with the Moon's surface.
What is the difference between mare and highlands on the Moon?
Maria vs. Highlands The side facing the earth consists of dark (basaltic) lava filled basins called mare (maria) or seas. The lighter areas are heavily impacted terrain called the highlands. These contrasting features can easily be seen with the naked eye.
Which is older mare or highlands?
Compared to geology of the Lunar Highlands: ● Lunar highlands have more impact craters than the mare. So, the highlands are older.
What is the difference between maria and highlands on the Moon?
The Maria are mostly composed of dark basalts, which form from rapid cooling of molten rock from massive lava flows. The Highlands rocks are largely Anorthosite, which is a kind of igneous rock that forms when lava cools more slowly than in the case of basalts.
Is there water on the Moon?
Lunar water is water that is present on the Moon. Diffuse water molecules can persist at the Moon's sunlit surface, as discovered by NASA's SOFIA observatory in 2020. Gradually water vapor is decomposed by sunlight, leaving hydrogen and oxygen lost to outer space.
How does a mare differ from a crater?
The mare patches represent lava-filled craters. Most such craters lie in the bottoms of much larger and much older basins. On the nearside, such basins contain circular mare. On the farside, such basin filling volcanism is rare.
Is there a sea in the Moon?
In fact, there isn't a single sea on the lunar surface. The Sea of Tranquility is actually a lunar mare. Now, although the plural of 'mare', 'maria', is a Latin word that means 'seas', these maria don't have water in them. Lunar maria were named as such because early astronomers mistook these areas as seas.
How were craters formed?
Craters are formed by the outward explosion of rocks and other materials from a volcano. Calderas are formed by the inward collapse of a volcano's magma chamber. Craters are usually much smaller features than calderas, and calderas are sometimes considered giant craters.
When were the Moon's craters formed?
Craters of the Moon formed during eight major eruptive periods between 15,000 and 2000 years ago.
Why are there craters on the Moon but not Earth?
Because of tectonics, the surface of Earth is recycled many times throughout its long history. As a result, very few rocks on Earth are as old as the rocks on the Moon. The Moon has not had tectonics for billions of years. That's a lot more time for craters to form and stay put.
What are craters caused by?
Craters come in two flavors: those that aren't caused by asteroids or comets, impact craters, are formed by powerful volcanic explosions. Such outbursts can be violent enough that once the eruption is over, the volcano collapses in on its empty vacant magma chamber and forms a caldera, or volcanic crater.
What is the moon maria covered with?
The lunar maria are covered with basalt lava flows. These lunar basalts have a mineralogy similar to that of terrestrial basalts, but chemically they have no water, a lower amount of alkalis and alumina, and a higher iron oxide and chromium content. On the lunar highlands, plagioclase-rich…
What is the debris layer on the moon called?
This debris layer, comprising rock fragments of all sizes down to fine dust, is called regolith. Before the first unmanned spacecraft landings on the Moon in the 1960s, some astronomers feared that the surface would be so pulverized that the machines might sink in.
How long ago were the maria basins formed?
The maria basins were formed beginning about 3.9 billion years ago during a period of intense bombardment by asteroid-sized bodies.
What are marias made of?
In actuality, maria are huge basins containing lava flows marked by craters, ridges, faults, and straight and meandering valleys called rille s and are devoid of water. There are about 20 major areas of this type, most of them—including the largest ones—located on the side of the Moon that always faces Earth.
How was Mare Tranquillitatis formed?
This basin is thought to have been formed as a result of a very large impact in the Moon's early history, likely more than 3.9 billion years ago. The crater was then flooded with mare basalts, making it appear dark when viewed from Earth, and making it smooth and relatively flat, as seen in LOLA data. There is only a little over a 500 m elevation difference between the highest and lowest points within the mare, excluding overprinted craters. The mare has an irregular margin because several basins, including Serenitatis and Nectaris, intersect in this region. See if you can find other features surrounding Mare Tranquillitatis on a map of the Moon.
How much elevation difference is there between the highest and lowest points of the Mare?
There is only a little over a 500 m elevation difference between the highest and lowest points within the mare, excluding overprinted craters. The mare has an irregular margin because several basins, including Serenitatis and Nectaris, intersect in this region.
Where was the first lunar landing?
On July 20, 1969 Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin left the first human footprints on the Moon near the southwestern shores of Mare Tranquillitatis.
