which of the following is not evidence supporting the giant impact theory for the formation of the moon?
Although how the moon was formed has long been a mystery, the many new studies emerging in the field support the theory that the moon formed from debris left over from a collision between the newborn Earth and a rock the size of Mars.
which of the following is not evidence supporting the giant impact theory for the formation of the moon?
The giant impact hypothesis is an accepted scientific hypothesis about the birth of the moon, which is believed to have been born as a result of a collision between Earth and a young body the size of Mars, sometimes called Thea after the mythical Greek Titan who was the daughter of Selene, the moon goddess. Evidence for this hypothesis is that some samples that came from the surface of the moon were molten at times, and that the moon is – apparently – a relatively small iron core, and evidence of similar collisions in other planetary systems (which lead to the formation of debris disks).
which of the following is not evidence supporting the giant impact theory for the formation of the moon?
The giant-impact hypothesis is currently the favored scientific hypothesis for the formation of the Moon. Supporting evidence includes: Earth’s spin and the Moon’s orbit have similar orientations. The Earth–Moon system contains an anomalously high angular momentum.
According to astronomical calculations, the speed of the impact was moderate. It is believed that Thea hit Earth at an oblique angle then when the planet would have been almost completely. Computer simulations of this ‘late collision’ scenario (delayed relative to the delayed heavy ejection period) show an impact angle of about 45° and an initial impact velocity of under 4 km/s. When the collision occurred, Theia’s mineral core was deposited into the young Earth’s core, while most of Theia’s mantle and a large part of the Earth’s mantle and crust were ejected into orbit around it. This material quickly coalesced into the moon (it is likely that this happened in less than a month, but not in more than a century). Estimates based on computer simulations of such collisions suggest that about 2% of Theia’s original mass became a ring of debris orbiting the Earth, and about half of that material fused into the moon we see today. The Earth gained a good amount of angular momentum and mass from this collision. Regardless of how much Earth’s orbit was spinning and skewed before the impact, its day would likely have been about five hours afterward, and its equator would likely have shifted closer to the lunar orbit plain.