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TABLE OF CONTENTS

TABLE OF CONTENTS. TABLE OF CONTENTS What is Lunar Formation? Formation Theories Giant Impact Theory Links. Image from NASA. Earth’s Moon. WHAT IS LUNAR FORMATION?. Lunar formation is the process in which a moon is created.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

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  1. TABLE OF CONTENTS TABLE OF CONTENTS What is Lunar Formation? Formation Theories Giant Impact Theory Links Image from NASA Earth’s Moon

  2. WHAT IS LUNAR FORMATION? • Lunar formation is the process in which a moon is created. • There are several theories on how Earth’s moon was formed, but nobody is sure what really happened. Image from NASA Earth’s Moon from South Pole Back to Table of Contents

  3. FORMATION THEORIES • There are four main theories of lunar formation: • Fission Theory: The moon was part of the Earth, but somehow broke off and became its own celestial body. • Capture Theory: The moon, which was formed elsewhere, traveled through Earth’s orbit and got caught in its gravity field. Image from NASA Earth’s Moon Back to Table of Contents More Theories

  4. MORE FORMATION THEORIES • Condensation Theory: Both the Earth and the moon formed at the same time in the same area. • Giant Impact Theory: The dominant theory in which a large celestial body slammed into the Earth. The moon was created out of the debris. Image from NASA Earth and its Moon Previous Back to Table of Contents

  5. GIANT IMPACT THEORY • The Giant Impact Theory, also known as the “Big Whack,” is the dominant lunar formation theory. • In this theory, a Mars-sized “protoplanet” collided with Earth, releasing debris which eventually formed the moon. Artist’s interpretation of the impact. Back to Table of Contents More on Giant Impact Theory

  6. MORE GIANT IMPACT THEORY • At first, the theory was heavily criticized, but with the development of models and simulations, the theory became more widely accepted. • Since a collision on this scale is hard to model, computer simulations have been used to try to replicate the event. Image from ClassZone Screenshot from a Giant Impact simulation. Click the image to view the animation. Previous Back to Table of Contents Giant Impact Theory’s Issues

  7. GIANT IMPACT ISSUES • No simulation has yet been able to confirm the theory. Often in simulations, the Earth after collision is left spinning too fast or its mass is decreased by too much. • The theory does not explain the Moon’s lack of iron and siderophilic (iron-liking) elements. Image from DTA Simulated image of the moon’s accretion. Back to Table of Contents Previous

  8. LINKS • http://www.swri.org/3pubs/ttoday/spring99/moon.htm • http://www.classzone.com/books/earth_science/terc/content/visualizations/es2501/es2501page01.cfm?chapter_no=visualization Image from NASA False Color Image of the Moon Back to Table of Contents

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