2023-05-18 11:58:06
A new study claims that the Moon, our familiar celestial neighbor, has a solid core with a density similar to that of iron
The astronomer Rafael Bachiller reveals to us in this series the most spectacular phenomena of the Cosmos. Pulsating research topics, astronomical adventures and scientific news about the Universe analyzed in depth.
A new study shows that the moon has a solid core 500 kilometers in diameter and density similar to that of iron. This structure is consistent with the disappearance of the Moon’s magnetic field and with the circulation of iron compounds through its mantle.
like a tennis ball
The Moon, Earth’s only natural satellite, had its origin linked to that of our planet and, therefore, both bodies present similarities, but great differences are also observed between them. In comparative terms, the Moon has a large size: if we leave aside Charon (the satellite of the dwarf planet Pluto), the Moon is the largest natural satellite in the solar system. Its diameter, 3,500 kilometers, is greater than a quarter of Earth’s (13,000 kilometers). If the Earth were the size of a basketball, the Moon would be like a tennis ball and the two bodies would be 7 meters apart.
Its large size, together with the fact that it is the closest star to Earth, makes the Moon the most familiar of all celestial objects and the first visited by humans, in short: a star about which we know many details.
Crust, mantle and core
However, the Moon still holds some secrets, one of the biggest being its deepest internal structure. Certainly the seismographs installed by the apollo missions, They allowed us to study the lunar structure thanks to the earthquakes produced by the effect of the terrestrial tides or by the fall of large meteorites. Thus, we know with certainty that our satellite is covered by a thin crust (about 50 kilometers thick) of well differentiated chemical composition. Under this crust, there is a very thick mantle, about 1,300 kilometers thick, and very heterogeneous, in which iron and magnesium oxides abound. And, already in the center, we have a nucleus about which much less is known.
The structure of the Moon is similar, then, to that of the Earth, but the big difference is that the interior of the Earth is large, very hot and remains active, while the Moon’s core is, relatively speaking, much smaller and much cooler.
To investigate the lunar core, Lunar Laser telemetry experiments have been used. Ranging). This technique consists of sending powerful laser beams from Earth so that they are reflected in the five reflectors that were installed on the Moon by the Apollo missions and the Soviet Lunokhod probes. The data obtained have allowed us to deduce that the Moon must have a small solid core surrounded by a fluid layer.
In a new study, a team of astronomers from French institutions led by Arthur Briaud (CNRS) has examined all the data obtained on the lunar core obtained by different techniques, including those of laser telemetry and others related to the rotation of the satellite. The researchers find that the solid core has a diameter of 500 kilometers, that is, 15% of the diameter of the Moon. They also deduce that the density of this inner core is very similar to that of iron.
Confirmation of the existence of that small solid nucleus is already a great achievement. But, in addition, this study supports the existence of displacements of material through the lunar mantle, a phenomenon known as ‘mantle inversion’ that helps explain the presence of a high abundance of iron-rich compounds on the surface. The study also explains the disappearance of the lunar magnetic field. Originally the magnetic field of our satellite was one hundred times more intense than the terrestrial one, but today it is practically null, something that is understood in light of the structure of the nucleus.
The article by Briaud et al., titled The lunar solid inner core and the mantle overturn has been published a few days ago in the prestigious scientific journal Nature.
Rafael Bachiller is director of the National Astronomical Observatory (National Geographic Institute) and academic of the Royal Academy of Doctors of spain.
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