Hundreds of years ago, electricity did not exist and the moon was the main and only lamp to light the way in the endless darkness. But urban light pollution has long lost the opportunity to observe the starry sky.

Although we are familiar with the moon and take it for granted, there are no mysteries in it: from its formation to the far side and the near side. While much is known about the near side of the moon, the far side, hidden from us, remains a mystery. But the whole mystery will become clear, as scientists continue to study the Earth’s moon and put forward new and very interesting theories.

Interesting facts about the moon

The formation of the moon

The prevailing theory of the formation of the Moon states that the Moon was created as a result of the Earth colliding with another celestial body. Like the other planets, Earth formed from a remnant cloud of dust and gas that surrounded the young Sun.

However, one of these objects may hit Earth in the early stages of its formation. Therefore, a collision with a Mars-sized object – Theia – resulted in the vaporized debris being ejected into the open space in the form of a young Earth’s crust. Gravity took the next step, binding these fragments together. Most scientists believe that this is what led to the creation of the moon.

Such a formation could explain why the moon is mostly composed of lighter elements, making it much less dense than Earth, NASA researchers believe.

Two sides of the same moon

The origin of the moon is still a mystery. But what about her countries? The near side (also called the “light side”) is full of scars and debris from ancient lava flows. The far side (the “dark side”) is completely devoid of large-scale features. This says a lot about the reasons for the differences in the aspects of a celestial body.

Thus, the differences between the “light” and “dark” sides of the moon were first recognized during the lunar race in the 1960s. In particular, on the “light” side there are: concentrations of fuel elements such as potassium (K), phosphorus (P), as well as thorium (a heavy, slightly radioactive silvery-white metal).