It’s bigger than we ever thought. This discovery will help make the work of astronauts easier. It will help to better understand how the Moon and the solar system as a whole came to be. The gigantic crater on the moon has been confirmed.
The surface of the Moon is marked by billions of years of craters. The Aitken South Pole Basin stands out, one of the largest and oldest craters in the solar system. It covers almost a quarter of the lunar surface, with a diameter of about 2,500 kilometers. Studying this basin is challenging, due to its size and features obscured by subsequent impacts.
Vertical impact
It appears to have formed differently than previously thought, possibly being larger than previous studies indicated. Geologist Hannes Bernhardt, from the University of Maryland, details it.
Previous models postulated that the impact was the result of an oblique collision. It created an oval-shaped crater and distributed the debris predominantly in one direction. But by analyzing more than 200 mountain features around the edge of the basin, they found a more circular shape than expected. This indicates a more vertical angle of impact. The debris is more evenly distributed than previously believed.
The gigantic crater of the moon did not form as thought. «An object hit the surface of the Moon at a more vertical angle. Possibly similar to dropping a rock directly on the ground,” explains Bernhardt. These findings could help better understand the formation of the Moon, which remains a mystery. The most widespread theory is that it was formed from debris after a massive impact.
lunar origin
“One of the most exciting implications of our research is how it is applicable to missions to the Moon and beyond. Astronauts would access ancient lunar materials. “They could help us understand how the Moon and our solar system came to be,” says Bernhardt.
Measurements of the basin’s gravity suggest the existence of a higher-density crust beneath it. It indicates the existence of a dense asteroid fragment buried there. Accessing it could help answer fundamental questions about the history of Earth’s satellite.
