Researchers have discovered that the moon’s atmosphere is formed by meteorites bombarding its surface over billions of years. This revelation came after analyzing old moon rocks collected during the Apollo missions using new technology. The study, published in Science Advances, sheds light on the processes that contribute to the moon’s thin atmosphere.
The team of scientists, led by Nicole Nie from MIT, found that impact vaporization and ion sputtering are the two main space weathering processes that shape the lunar atmosphere. Impact vaporization occurs when meteorites hit the surface, kicking up dust into the atmosphere. On the other hand, ion sputtering happens when charged particles from the sun transfer energy to the moon’s surface, causing atoms to be sputtered into the air.
By analyzing isotopes of potassium and rubidium in the moon rocks, researchers were able to determine that about 70% of the moon’s atmosphere originated from meteorite impacts, while the remaining 30% came from solar winds. This finding provides valuable insights into the sources of the elements present in the moon’s atmosphere.
Nie and her team are eager to analyze samples from future lunar missions like Artemis, which will bring soil samples from different regions of the moon. They are also interested in studying samples from Mars’ moons to expand their framework for analyzing samples from other planetary bodies.
Overall, this study highlights the importance of analyzing old rocks with new technology to unravel the mysteries of celestial bodies like the moon. The findings open up new possibilities for understanding the origins of planetary atmospheres and the effects of space weathering processes over billions of years.