The Moon (Earth's Moon)

[eburacum]

Interestingly, the article goes on to say that the Moon will then reverse its outward spiral, and approach the Earth, eventually disintegrating into a ring. This is a very uncertain outcome, however, as the details of tidal interactions are very variable on these long timescales - this disintegration may not happen until after the Sun goes red giant, which would completely change the fate of the Earth-Moon system.

 

[hunck]

I remember seeing a programme with Maggie Aderin-Pocock in which she speculated that when distance between earth & moon which is increasing by a small amount each year [10cm?] reached a certain distance it would affect the stability of the earth which would start to wobble with unpredictable, possibly catastrophic results. I think this would be by about 1 billion years, long before the sun dies.

The moon’s current position is at a beneficial relatively stable distance for life on earth.

 

[EnolaGaia]

Newly published results from studying the moon rocks China brought back to earth indicate vulcanism was still happening on the moon much later than previously believed. Nobody's sure how that happened ...

China's fresh moon rocks are younger than the Apollo samples and no one knows why

New analyses of moon rocks delivered to Earth by China's Chang'e 5 mission confirm that volcanism occurred later than previously known, but also deepen the mysteries surrounding that activity.

China's Chang'e 5 spacecraft collected 3.81 pounds (1.73 kilograms) of lunar dust and rocks from a region called Oceanus Procellarum on the near side of the moon in December 2020. The mission team targeted this landing area because of its apparent lower density of craters, suggesting it was significantly younger than areas sampled by the Apollo and Soviet Luna missions.

The samples were first processed and catalogued, and a first batch of samples were approved for release in June. Since then, various teams of scientists have since been working to learn what the rocks can tell us about the moon and the history of our solar system. ...


A first paper published in Science in early October dated a fragment of the samples at about 1.97 billion years old. Now a second, published in Nature on Oct. 19, uses a similar dating method but on a different sample, gives an age of 2.03 billion years — very close, geologically speaking. The pair of dates confirms that volcanic activity was taking place in this area of the moon around a billion years after the areas sampled by the Apollo and Soviet Luna missions had become geologically dead. ...

Why the mantle beneath this patch of the moon was still active relatively late in the moon's history remains a mystery, however. ...

FULL STORY: https://www.livescience.com/china-moon-rocks-younger-than-apollo-rocks

 

[Tunn11]

They obviously landed at new moon

Sorry, I'll get my coat.

 

[Gizmos Mama]

On Nov 18-19, there was a Lunar eclipse that lasted over 3 hrs. It was the longest in 580 yrs. If you didn't get a chance to see it, here's a couple of pictures I took.

 

[charliebrown]

China”s moon rover has been exploring the back side of the moon since 2019.

Recently the rover spotted a cube on the surface which the Chinese word translates to “ mystery house “.

China figures it takes the rover 3 days to get a closer look.

https://www.cnet.com/news/china-moon-rover-to-investigate-cube-shaped-mystery-house-object/

 

[blessmycottonsocks]

China”s moon rover has been exploring the back side of the moon since 2019.

Recently the rover spotted a cube on the surface which the Chinese word translates to “ mystery house “.

China figures it takes the rover 3 days to get a closer look.

https://www.cnet.com/news/china-moon-rover-to-investigate-cube-shaped-mystery-house-object/

Here's an image of the "Mystery House".

It's on the horizon which, on the Moon, means about 1.5 miles distant.
I suspect it will turn out to be nothing more than a heavily pixelated rock, but we should know for sure when Yutu -2 gets closer.

 

[charliebrown]

The moon is a bizarre place, and I would love to know the explanation for this “ mystery house “.

There is actually a 3.5 mile tower on the moon seen by LROC moon mapping mission.

After many years of being quiet, NASA claims it is just a illusion of a crater in a crater.

Just by the moon is being hollow, perfect orbit between the sun and earth, having a thin mantle, many people think the moon is an artificial satellite.

The moon is vital to the earth’s survival.

 

[blessmycottonsocks]

Was looking for an update on the "Mystery House" object.
Seems to be lots of conflicting information.
Most reports describe the cuboid object as being on the horizon from Yutu 2's position which, ought to place it over a mile from the rover.
Some though state the object is at a distance of just 80 to 100 metres away so, given there's no atmospheric haze on the Moon, the image should be much clearer.
In any case, because Yutu 2's top speed is comparable to a quadriplegic tortoise wading through peanut butter, it's going to be around 3 Lunar days (that's 2.5 to 3 Earth months) before it arrives at the object.
Hopefully the rover will keep taking photos as it approaches and we'll be able to identify the object before too long.
The smart money seems to be on a boulder unearthed (unmooned?) by a meteorite impact.

https://www.space.com/china-yutu-2-moon-rover-cube-shaped-object-photos

 

[blessmycottonsocks]

As Yutu 2 inches painfully slowly towards the "Mysterious Hut", NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) has snapped the object from orbit.
The pixilation makes it difficult to determine any detail, but the shape is suggestive of two closely positioned rocks on the edge of the crater.
Yutu 2 is approaching from the bottom right corner of the photo.

https://earthsky.org/space/mystery-hut-yutu-2-rover-far-side-of-moon-china/

 

[pandacracker]

I had no idea about the length of a lunar day until reading that article.

 

[blessmycottonsocks]

Wouldn't it be cool if, when (eventually) Yutu 2 approaches the "mysterious hut" the latter suddenly sprouted two giant chicken legs like Baba Yaga/Deathless Mother's hut in The Witcher and legged it?

 

[blessmycottonsocks]

And surprise, surprise!
The Mysterious Hut was just a rock after all:

https://www.cnet.com/news/mystery-hut-spotted-by-chinas-moon-rover-gets-an-explanation/

 

[Mythopoeika]

Awwwwwwwwww.

 

[blessmycottonsocks]

Awwwwwwwwww.

'Fraid so!

It's yet another Fortean misfire, like the Roswell surveillance balloon, the Cumberland Spacemum, the Golden Retriever with a stick in its mouth and the Patterson–Gimlin man in a gorilla suit.

 

[Tunn11]

A Charlie Brown moment

https://me.me/i/i-got-a-weightless-cloak-from-the-planet-pasmin-0-a4a640d6029140aa838dc769118f7738

Charlie Brown from "Peanuts" btw not @charliebrown above !

 

[ramonmercado]

Water on the Moon. Ancient magnetic fields help to preserve the ice.

For years, scientists have believed frigid craters at the Moon’s poles hold water ice, which would be both a scientific boon and a potential resource for human missions.

Now, researchers have discovered a reason why the ice has persisted on an otherwise bone-dry world: Some polar craters may be protected by ancient magnetic fields.

“It’s really exciting,” says Jim Green, NASA’s former chief scientist, who was not involved with the work. “It makes these areas even more fascinating.”

Hundreds of polar craters are in permanent shadow because of the Moon’s small tilt to the Sun, 1.5° compared with Earth’s 23.4°. The Sun never rises above their rims, keeping temperatures as low as –250°C. In some of the pits, radar instruments on orbiting spacecraft have detected the reflective signature of water ice, perhaps delivered by comet impacts. And in 2018, scientists using an instrument aboard India’s Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft reported measurements showing how molecules of polar ice absorbed infrared light—some of the most definitive evidence yet.

Explaining the ice’s survival has been a challenge, however. Although sunlight doesn’t reach the craters, the solar wind does, and these charged particles can destroy the ice, molecule by molecule, in a process called sputtering. “It’s highly erosive,” says Paul Lucey, a planetary scientist at the University of Hawaii, Manoa, who was also not involved with the work. “The ice would be gone in a few million years.” ...

https://www.science.org/content/art...-fields-moon-could-be-protecting-precious-ice

 

[charliebrown]

A study from UCLA and The University of Colorado claims that after studying a lot of data is that a person could live in moon caves where the temperatures never varies from 63 F about 17 C.

The moon caves would be like the lava caves on earth.

Supposedly a person in a moon cave could be very comfortable with an oxygen atmosphere.

 

[pandacracker]

Supposedly a person in a moon cave could be very comfortable with an oxygen atmosphere

And cushions.

 

[Swifty]

Apparently we're going to witness a new moon eclipse tonight at 11:48 GMT.

 

[Sid]

Apparently we're going to witness a new moon eclipse tonight at 11:48 GMT.

Solar Eclipse. . . it's been and gone!

 

[Swifty]

Solar Eclipse. . . it's been and gone!

Lunar one tonight as well according to the internet .. and the internet never lies Sid.

 

[Erinaceus]

The Internet has its own truth.
The next lunar eclipse is on the 7/8 November and not visible in the UK.

https://www.timeanddate.com/eclipse/map/2022-november-8

I've put a couple of pictures of today's partial solar eclipse here

 

[pandacracker]

I came across this rather neat video of how it's thought the moon was formed.

 

[skinny]

fake

 

[Sid]

I came across this rather neat video of how it's thought the moon was formed.

That's very interesting.
I used to know an amateur Historian who had theories about a whole host of things, and one of them that I remember him telling me about (he's since past away), was that he had the theory that the planets (including the Earth) may well have been 'spit-out's' from the Sun, being formed in just in the same way as this video shows for the creation of the Moon, thrown out away from the Sun at various velocities, and over vast amounts of time some having moved further, and further away?
Could it be, that that's how the Sun gets rid of any excess internal mass I wonder?

 

[maximus otter]

Japanese astronomer catches meteorite smashing into the moon​

A Japanese astronomer captured the telltale flash of a meteorite impacting the moon, causing a brief flash on our celestial neighbor's nightside.

Daichi Fujii, curator of the Hiratsuka City Museum, recorded the event using cameras set to monitor the moon.

The time of the flash was 20:14:30.8 Japan Standard Time (7:14 a.m. EST, or 1114 GMT) on Feb. 23. The meteorite appears to have struck near Ideler L crater, slightly northwest of Pitiscus crater.

https://www.space.com/meteorite-impacts-moon-february-2023-video

maximus otter

 

[skinny]

That's cool. Our Shield in action.

I'd be interested to learn what such an impact would mean if it hit our planet. Luna takes almost all the shit headed for Gaia. Almost.

 

[Mythopoeika]

Japanese astronomer catches meteorite smashing into the moon​

Japanese astronomer... has his hand amputated.

 

[Floyd1]

Government signs £2.9m Moon base nuclear power deal with Rolls-Royce​

Image source, Rolls-Royce
Image caption,
Rolls-Royce wants to send a nuclear reactor to the Moon by 2029
By Dan Martin
BBC News

Rolls-Royce scientists and engineers are to research how nuclear power could be used to support a future Moon base.
The UK Space Agency has given the Derby-based firm £2.9m to look at ways of powering future lunar settlements.
The company has been asked to demonstrate how nuclear micro reactors could extend the duration of future missions to the Moon.
The government said the deal would boost the UK's space industry and create skilled jobs.
The UK Space Agency said it wanted to establish a new power source to support systems for communications, life-support and scientific experiments on the Moon.
The agency's chief executive Dr Paul Bate said: "We are backing technology and capabilities to support ambitious space exploration missions and boost sector growth across the UK.
"Developing space nuclear power offers a unique chance to support innovative technologies and grow our nuclear, science and space engineering skills base.
"This innovative research by Rolls-Royce could lay the groundwork for powering continuous human presence on the Moon, while enhancing the wider UK space sector, creating jobs and generating further investment."

Image source, Rolls-Royce
Image caption,
A visualisation of one of the firm's proposed mini-reactors
Rolls-Royce said it wanted to have a reactor ready to send to the Moon by 2029.
The company will work with the University of Oxford, University of Bangor, University of Brighton, University of Sheffield's Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC) and Nuclear AMRC on the project.
The Minister of State at the Department of Science, Innovation and Technology, George Freeman, said: "Space exploration is the ultimate laboratory for so many of the transformational technologies we need on Earth, from materials to robotics, nutrition, cleantech and much more.
"As we prepare to see humans return to the Moon for the first time in more than 50 years, we are backing exciting research like this lunar modular reactor with Rolls-Royce to pioneer new power sources for a lunar base."
Director of future programmes for Rolls-Royce Abi Clayton said: "The new tranche of funding from the UK Space Agency means so much for the Rolls-Royce Micro-Reactor Programme.
"It will bring us further down the road in making the micro-reactor a reality, with the technology bringing immense benefits for both space and Earth."

Source: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-derbyshire-64982477