Moon’s iron core revelation ends decade-long debate
New research reveals that the Moon's core has a density similar to that of iron. This discovery may end longstanding discussions regarding the internal structure of the Moon's core and contribute to a deeper understanding of its past, bringing us closer to answering how the Solar System formed.
The research published in "Nature" confirms that the Moon has a solid core with a density akin to iron. As reported by Science Alert, this discovery ends a longstanding debate about the internal state of the Moon's core.
The Moon's interior like Earth's
A team of scientists led by Arthur Briaud from the French National Centre for Scientific Research analysed data from space missions and laser experiments. The results indicate the existence of a fluid outer layer and a significant inner core, similar to Earth's. The outer core has a radius of approximately 360 kilometres, and the inner one about 260 kilometres.
The studies showed that the density of the inner core is approximately 7,800 kilograms per cubic metre, which is close to the density of iron. This confirms earlier findings from 2011, when a NASA team led by Renee Weber also suggested the existence of a solid core.
The future of research. What secrets does the Moon still hold?
The discovery has significant implications for understanding the Moon's evolution. It is known that the Moon once had a strong magnetic field, which began to fade around 3.2 billion years ago. Movement and convection in the core are key to generating such a field, making the core's composition extremely important.
Scientists hope that future missions to the Moon will provide additional data to verify these findings. The research may shed new light on the history of the Moon in the first billion years of the Solar System's existence.
