Fragments of Planet Theia appear to be buried deep beneath Africa and the Pacific Ocean. And now more evidence has been found deep in the moon via NASA's GRAIL craft
A new study of metal ore deep inside the moon is offering fresh evidence that Earth's natural satellite was formed by an ancient planet crashing into Earth long ago.
A new study of the moon is offering fresh evidence that Earth's natural satellite was formed by an ancient planet crashing into Earth. This long-theorized collision, some 4.5 billion years ago, saw a Mars-sized planet named 'Theia' slice into hot lava fragments upon impact with Earth 'Analyzing these variations in the moon's gravity field allowed us to peek under the moon's surface and see what lies beneath,' Broquet said.
After Theia's likely collision with Earth, and after fragments of this lost planet became buried deep below Earth's crust, molten lava pools of heavy titanium and iron on the moon's surface began to sink deeper towards its core, pushing lighter rock up. One LLVP is located beneath the African tectonic plate and the other under the Pacific tectonic plate, as measured by seismic equipment similar to that used to detect earthquakes.
Scientists believe the material in these LLVPs is between 2 and 3.5 percent denser than the Earth's surrounding mantle. 'Through precise analysis of a wider range of rock samples, combined with more refined giant impact models and Earth evolution models, we can infer the material composition and orbital dynamics of the primordial Earth,"Gaia," and"Theia,"' said Deng's co-author Qian Yuan, a CalTech geophysicist who also worked on this project.
United Kingdom Latest News, United Kingdom Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Scientists discover remains of a 'buried planet' deep inside EARTHFragments of Planet Theia appear to be buried deep beneath Africa and the Pacific Ocean. And now more evidence has been found deep in the moon via NASA's GRAIL craft
Read more »
Sir David Attenborough, 97, 'replaced' on BBC's Planet Earth IIISir David Attenborough - who was 'surprised' by an incredible shot of a leopard jumping 50ft down from a tree to hunt an antelope - says he thought his 'words weren't all that necessary' to describe the unbelievable moment.
Read more »
Sir David Attenborough, 97, 'replaced' on BBC's Planet Earth IIISir David Attenborough - who was 'surprised' by an incredible shot of a leopard jumping 50ft down from a tree to hunt an antelope - says he thought his 'words weren't all that necessary' to describe the unbelievable moment.
Read more »
Earth Day 2023: What Is Earth Day, This Year’s Theme And How You Can HelpFrom what Earth Day is and it's history to this year's Earth Day theme for 2023, Vogue shares everything you need to know about Earth 2023, and how you can help.
Read more »
Scientists Warn Earth's Demise Could Be More Violent Than ExpectedScientists say our sun could crush parts of the solar system to dust as it dies. Earth will be swallowed by the expanding sun, while other planets will be crushed and ground to dust. However, this is expected to happen in around six billion years.
Read more »
Scientists Warn Earth's Demise Could Be More Violent Than ExpectedScientists say our sun could crush parts of the solar system to dust as it dies. Earth will be swallowed by the expanding sun, while other planets will be crushed and ground to dust. However, this is expected to happen in around six billion years.
Read more »