{"id":2463,"date":"2024-06-10T18:18:20","date_gmt":"2024-06-10T17:18:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/popastro-com.stackstaging.com\/lunar\/?page_id=2463"},"modified":"2024-06-10T18:18:21","modified_gmt":"2024-06-10T17:18:21","slug":"how-it-formed","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/lunar-geology\/how-it-formed\/","title":{"rendered":"How The Moon Formed"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><!-- WP Menubar 5.9.4: start menu moonwatch, template Suckerfish_45, CSS sf-blue.css -->\n\r\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n\/\/ <![CDATA[\r\n\twpm1_Hover = function() {\r\n\tvar wpmEls = document.getElementById(\"wpm1\").getElementsByTagName(\"li\");\r\n\tfor (var i=0; i<wpmEls.length; i++) {\r\n\t\twpmEls[i].onmouseover = function() {\r\n\t\t\tthis.className += \" wpmhover\";\r\n\t\t}\r\n\t\twpmEls[i].onmouseout = function() {\r\n\t\t\tthis.className = this.className.replace(new RegExp(\" wpmhover\\\\b\"), \"\");\r\n\t\t}\r\n\t}\r\n}\r\nif (window.attachEvent) window.attachEvent(\"onload\", wpm1_Hover);\r\n\/\/ ]]>\r\n<\/script>\r\n\r\n<div class=\"sf-blue-before\"><\/div>\r\n<div id=\"wpm1\" class=\"sf-blue\">\r\n<ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/\" >Home<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/observing\/\" >Observing<\/a><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/observing\/moon-lighting\/\" >Moon Lighting<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/observing\/how-much-can-you-see\/\" >How much can you see?<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/observing\/seas-and-mountains\/\" >Seas and mountains<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/observing\/binos-and-telescopes\/\" >Binoculars and telescopes<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/observing\/drawing-the-moon\/\" >Drawing the Moon<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/observing\/getting-to-know\/\" >Getting to know the Moon<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/exploration\/\" >Exploration<\/a><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/exploration\/landings-timeline\/\" >Landings and Timeline<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/exploration\/apollo-to-the-moon\/\" >Apollo to the Moon<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/exploration\/meeting-challenge\/\" >Meeting the Challenge<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/exploration\/driving-and-hills\/\" >Driving to the Hills<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/exploration\/apollo-timeline\/\" >Apollo Timeline<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/lunar-geology\/\" >Geology<\/a><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/lunar-geology\/how-it-formed\/\" >How The Moon Formed<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/lunar-geology\/moon-rocks-quakes\/\" >Moon Rocks and Quakes<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/lunar-geology\/what-its-made-of\/\" >What the Moon is Made Of<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/lunar-geology\/lunar-gardening\/\" >Lunar Gardening and Craters<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/lunar-geology\/wrinkles-and-meanders\/\" >Wrinkles and Meanders<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/vital-moon\/\" >The Vital Moon<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/art-and-culture\/\" >Art and Culture<\/a><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/art-and-culture\/moon-paintings\/\" >The Moon in Paintings<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/art-and-culture\/moon-stamps\/\" >The Moon in Stamps<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/moon-trivia\/\" >Moon Trivia<\/a><\/li><\/ul>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<div class=\"sf-blue-after\"><\/div>\r\n<!-- WP Menubar 5.9.4: end menu moonwatch, template Suckerfish_45, CSS sf-blue.css -->\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Use the sub-menu above to navigate this section of the website.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-media-text is-stacked-on-mobile\" style=\"grid-template-columns:45% auto\"><figure class=\"wp-block-media-text__media\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"320\" height=\"189\" src=\"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/06\/Earthandmoon.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2473 size-full\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/06\/Earthandmoon.jpg 320w, https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/06\/Earthandmoon-300x177.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 320px) 100vw, 320px\" \/><\/figure><div class=\"wp-block-media-text__content\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Before astronauts went to the Moon there were several main theories about how the Moon formed. One of the goals of the Apollo missions was to try and choose which theory fit best, but in the end, a completely new theory was born. Before we look at all the different theories, we need to look at some of the differences and similarities between the Earth and Moon:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The Earth has a large iron core, but the Moon does not.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Earth has an average density of 5.5 g\/cm<sup>3<\/sup>\u00a0and the Moon has an average density of 3.3 g\/cm<sup>3<\/sup>\u00a0(because it is depleted in iron).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The Moon has exactly the same oxygen isotope composition as the Earth, whereas Mars rocks, and meteorites from other parts of the Solar System (e.g. the asteroid belt) have much different isotope compositions.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The original Moon-forming theories, and why they can\u2019t be what really happened, are as follows:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong><em>Capture<\/em><\/strong><br>The capture theory says that the Earth and Moon formed in two very different parts of the Solar System but that at some point the Earth \u2018captured\u2019 the Moon with its gravity as it passed near to the Earth. This can\u2019t have happened as the oxygen isotopes of both the Earth and the Moon showed they formed in pretty much exactly the same place in the Solar System.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Co-accretion<\/strong><br>This theory says that the Earth and Moon formed (accreted) in the same part of the Solar System from similar building blocks, and that the Moon is a sister planet to the Earth. This theory failed because it can\u2019t explain why the Moon is depleted in iron compared to the Earth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Fission<\/strong><br>Fission describes the somewhat crazy idea that the young Earth was spinning so fast that it spun a lump of material off that went on to form the Moon. This theory fails because it defies the laws of physics!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Giant Impact<\/strong><br>You\u2019ve already heard about the Giant Impact theory, which is the current favoured formation mechanism for the Moon. This theory accounts for both the similarities and the differences between the Earth and Moon\u2019s composition. It assumes that the Earth\u2019s iron had already drained into the core by the time the impact happened, and that the impactor also contained an iron core. The majority of debris thrown out by the giant impact came from their rocky mantles, and the core of the impactor melted on impact and merged with the iron core of the Earth.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">There is one thing this theory doesn\u2019t explain, however, and that is why only one Moon formed, or why we don\u2019t see evidence for this happening elsewhere in the Solar System!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"974\" height=\"28\" src=\"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/06\/moon_guide_bottom.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2255\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/06\/moon_guide_bottom.jpg 974w, https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/06\/moon_guide_bottom-300x9.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/06\/moon_guide_bottom-768x22.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/06\/moon_guide_bottom-600x17.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 974px) 100vw, 974px\" \/><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Use the sub-menu above to navigate this section of the website. The original Moon-forming theories, and why they can\u2019t be what really happened, are as follows: CaptureThe capture theory says that the Earth and Moon formed in two very different<a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/lunar-geology\/how-it-formed\/\"><span>Read more<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":23,"featured_media":2246,"parent":2356,"menu_order":1,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2463","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t<!-- All in One SEO 5.0.5 - aioseo.com -->\n\t<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Use the sub-menu above to navigate this section of the website. Before astronauts went to the Moon there were several main theories about how the Moon formed. 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Apollo 15\nCredit Kipp Teague\/David Woods\/NASA\/Galaxy"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/lunar-geology\/how-it-formed\/#mainImage"},"datePublished":"2024-06-10T18:18:20+01:00","dateModified":"2024-06-10T18:18:21+01:00"},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/","name":"Lunar Section","description":"Astronomy for everyone","inLanguage":"en-GB","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/#organization"}}]},"og:locale":"en_GB","og:site_name":"Lunar Section - Astronomy for everyone","og:type":"article","og:title":"How The Moon Formed - Lunar Section","og:description":"Use the sub-menu above to navigate this section of the website. Before astronauts went to the Moon there were several main theories about how the Moon formed. One of the goals of the Apollo missions was to try and choose which theory fit best, but in the end, a completely new theory was born. Before","og:url":"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/lunar-geology\/how-it-formed\/","article:published_time":"2024-06-10T17:18:20+00:00","article:modified_time":"2024-06-10T17:18:21+00:00","twitter:card":"summary_large_image","twitter:title":"How The Moon Formed - Lunar Section","twitter:description":"Use the sub-menu above to navigate this section of the website. Before astronauts went to the Moon there were several main theories about how the Moon formed. One of the goals of the Apollo missions was to try and choose which theory fit best, but in the end, a completely new theory was born. Before"},"aioseo_meta_data":{"post_id":"2463","title":null,"description":null,"keywords":null,"keyphrases":{"focus":{"keyphrase":"","score":0,"analysis":{"keyphraseInTitle":{"score":0,"maxScore":9,"error":1}}},"additional":[]},"primary_term":null,"canonical_url":null,"og_title":null,"og_description":null,"og_object_type":"default","og_image_type":"default","og_image_url":null,"og_image_width":null,"og_image_height":null,"og_image_custom_url":null,"og_image_custom_fields":null,"og_video":"","og_custom_url":null,"og_article_section":null,"og_article_tags":null,"twitter_use_og":false,"twitter_card":"default","twitter_image_type":"default","twitter_image_url":null,"twitter_image_custom_url":null,"twitter_image_custom_fields":null,"twitter_title":null,"twitter_description":null,"schema":{"blockGraphs":[],"customGraphs":[],"default":{"data":{"Article":[],"Course":[],"Dataset":[],"FAQPage":[],"Movie":[],"Person":[],"Product":[],"ProductReview":[],"Car":[],"Recipe":[],"Service":[],"SoftwareApplication":[],"WebPage":[]},"graphName":"WebPage","isEnabled":true},"graphs":[]},"schema_type":"default","schema_type_options":null,"pillar_content":false,"robots_default":true,"robots_noindex":false,"robots_noarchive":false,"robots_nosnippet":false,"robots_nofollow":false,"robots_noimageindex":false,"robots_noodp":false,"robots_notranslate":false,"robots_max_snippet":"-1","robots_max_videopreview":"-1","robots_max_imagepreview":"large","priority":null,"frequency":"default","local_seo":null,"breadcrumb_settings":null,"limit_modified_date":false,"ai":null,"created":"2024-06-10 17:10:08","updated":"2025-06-04 02:50:54","seo_analyzer_scan_date":null,"focus_keyword":null,"additional_keywords":null,"truseo_locale":null},"aioseo_breadcrumb":"<div class=\"aioseo-breadcrumbs\"><span class=\"aioseo-breadcrumb\">\n\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/\" title=\"Home\">Home<\/a>\n\t\t<\/span><span class=\"aioseo-breadcrumb-separator\">\u00bb<\/span><span class=\"aioseo-breadcrumb\">\n\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/\" title=\"About the Moon\">About the Moon<\/a>\n\t\t<\/span><span class=\"aioseo-breadcrumb-separator\">\u00bb<\/span><span class=\"aioseo-breadcrumb\">\n\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/lunar-geology\/\" title=\"Geology\">Geology<\/a>\n\t\t<\/span><span class=\"aioseo-breadcrumb-separator\">\u00bb<\/span><span class=\"aioseo-breadcrumb\">\n\t\t\tHow The Moon Formed\n\t\t<\/span><\/div>","aioseo_breadcrumb_json":[{"label":"Home","link":"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/"},{"label":"About the Moon","link":"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/"},{"label":"Geology","link":"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/lunar-geology\/"},{"label":"How The Moon Formed","link":"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/moonwatch\/lunar-geology\/how-it-formed\/"}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2463","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/23"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2463"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2463\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2474,"href":"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2463\/revisions\/2474"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2356"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2246"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2463"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2463"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.popastro.com\/lunar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2463"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}