Lunar glass shows the effects of the moon asteroid reflected on Earth
Scientists have discovered that an asteroid collision with the moon millions of years ago precisely coincided with some of the largest meteorite impacts on Earth, such as the one that wiped out the dinosaurs.
In addition, the new research study also found that the major impact events on Earth were not stand-alone events, but were accompanied by a series of smaller impacts. These findings shed new light on asteroid dynamics in the inner solar system, including the potential for Earth-damaging asteroids.
Led by Curtin University, the international research team studied microscopic glass beads up to two billion years old that were discovered in lunar soil returned to Earth in December 2020 as part of China’s National Space Agency’s Chang’e-5 lunar mission. . . Since the heat and pressure from the meteor impacts created the glass spheres, their age distribution should mimic the impacts, revealing a timeline of the bombardment.
The Chang’e-5 return capsule contains samples of lunar soil. Credit: China National Space Agency
According to lead author Professor Alexander Nemchin, of Curtin University’s Space Science and Technology Center (SSTC) in the School of Earth and Planetary Sciences, the findings suggest that the timing and frequency of asteroid impacts on the Moon may have been reversed on Earth. , tells us more about the evolutionary history of our planet.
“We have combined a wide range of microscopic analytical techniques, numerical modeling and geological surveys to determine how and when these microscopic glass grains formed from the Moon,” said Professor Nemshin.
“We have found that some age groups of lunar glass beads precisely coincide with the ages of some of the largest impact crater events on Earth, including the Chicxulub impact crater responsible for the extinction event. dinosaurs.
“The study also found that large impact events on Earth such as the Chicxulub crater 66 million years ago could be accompanied by a number of smaller impacts. If true, this suggests that the age-frequency distributions of impacts on the Moon can provide valuable information about impacts on Earth or the inner solar system.
Future comparative studies can provide a deeper insight into the geological history of the moon, said study co-author Katharina Milikovic, co-author of the study, Katharina Milikovic, who also works at the Curtin Center for Science, Technology and Innovation in Curtin.
“The next step will be to compare the data collected from the Chang’e-5 samples with other lunar soils and crater ages to be able to detect other large impact events on the lunar surface which in turn could reveal new evidence about the impacts they had,” said Associate Professor Milkowicz.
Reference: “Restriction of Formation and Transmission of Lunar Effect Spectacles Using Ages and Chemical Compositions of Chang’e-5 Glass Beads” By Tao Long, Yuki Qian, Mark de Norman, Katrina Melkovitch, Caroline Crowe, James W. Head, Xiaochao Che, and Romain Tartèse, and Nicolle Zellner, Xuefeng Yu, Shiwen Xie, Martin Whitehouse, Katherine H. Joy, Clive R. Neal, Joshua F. Snape, Guisheng Zhou, Shoujie Liu, Chun Yang, Zhiqing Yang, and Chen Wang, Long Xiao, Donnie Liu and Alexander Nemchen, Sep 28, 2022 Available here. Scientists’ progress.
DOI: 10.1126 / sciadv.abq2542
The international collaboration was supported by the Australian Research Council and included researchers from Australia, China, the United States, the United Kingdom and Sweden, including co-authors Dr. Mark Norman from
” data-gt-translate-attributes=”[{“attribute=””>AustralianNationalUniversity[{“attribute=””>الجامعةالوطنيةالاستراليةDr. Tao Long of the SHRIMP Center in Beijing of the Chinese Academy of Geosciences and doctoral student Yuki Qian of the China University of Geosciences.