The face of the Moon turned toward us is termed the near side (image at right). It is divided into light areas called the Lunar Highlands and darker areas called near side (literally, “seas”; the singular is Mare).
Are there highlands on the Moon?
The highlands are heavily cratered and mountainous. We have learned that the maria are relatively young areas on the Moon which were generated after very large impacts penetrated the crust of our Moon and excavated basins. During later volcanic episodes, liquid magma came to the surface and filled these basins.
How are highlands on the Moon formed?
The Indian mission through the Moon mineralogy mapper has offered proof that the Moon’s highlands were formed by the eruption of a hot liquid inside the Moon’s surface popularly known as magma.
What is the difference between mare and highlands on the Moon?
Maria vs. Highlands
The side facing the earth consists of dark (basaltic) lava filled basins called mare (maria) or seas. The lighter areas are heavily impacted terrain called the highlands. These contrasting features can easily be seen with the naked eye.
What are highlands Moon NASA?
Lunar Terrain
The light areas of the Moon are known as the highlands. The dark features, called maria (Latin for seas), are impact basins that were filled with lava between 4.2 and 1.2 billion years ago.
Do the Mountains of the Moon exist?
In addition to giant craters and sweeping lava fields, the moon is home to some pretty massive mountains. Up there, the mountains are referred to as massifs. New charts of the lunar south pole revealed the towering nature of two such massifs: Malapert Massif and Leibniz Beta.
How much of the Moon is highlands?
The highland feldspathic crust of the Moon, about 12% of lunar volume, formed in contrast within a few million years. No crusts similar to the continental crust of the Earth appear to have formed on the other terrestrial planets, where the surface rocks are typically basaltic.
What created the highlands?
The chain of volcanic islands collided with the Grampian Highlands about 480–460 million years ago. This is called the Grampian Event. Baltica collided with the Northern Highlands about 440 million years ago, pushing together the Northern Highlands and North-west Seaboard. This is called the Scandian Event.
Are the Moons highlands dark?
From Earth, the lunar highlands appear as light regions while the maria – the lunar plains or “oceans” – appear dark.
Where do highlands come from?
The Highlands stretches from Fort William in the west, right up the coast by Skye, around the North Coast 500 to Durness and John O’ Groats in the far north. It also runs up to Inverness and east out to Elgin, taking in Aviemore and some of the Cairngorms National Park.
Which is older mare or highlands?
Compared to geology of the Lunar Highlands: ● Lunar highlands have more impact craters than the mare. So, the highlands are older.
Does the far side of the Moon have highlands?
After the first lunar missions orbited the Moon, it was discovered that unlike the near side, the far side is lacking large lava plains, or maria. The far side is mainly composed of heavily cratered highlands, while only very small areas contain smooth lava plains.
What did the US leave on the Moon?
Aside from trash—from food packaging to wet wipes—nearly 100 packets of human urine and excrement have been discarded. The Apollo astronauts also dumped tools and television equipment that they no longer needed.
Are there diamonds on the Moon?
Scientists have found evidence of cubic zirconia in Moon rocks, showing that the universe not only holds diamonds, but its own fire-safe knock-offs.
Why is Shoemaker buried on the Moon?
On a research expedition in Australia in 1997, while searching for still more undiscovered impact craters, Shoemaker got into a fatal car crash. On July 31, 1999, Shoemaker’s ashes were carried to the Moon by the Lunar Prospector space probe in honor of his tremendous contributions to planetary science.
Where is the mountain range on the moon?
Montes Apenninus are a rugged mountain range on the northern part of the Moon’s near side. They are named after the Apennine Mountains in Italy. With their formation dating back about 3.9 billion years, Montes Apenninus are fairly old.
Why are there no mountains on the moon?
Most mountains on the Earth are formed as plates collide and the crust buckles. Not so for the Moon, where mountains are formed as a result of impacts. Images taken looking across the landscape rather than straight down really bring out topography and help us visualize the lunar landscape.
Is there a valley on the moon?
Scientists have identified a huge rectangular feature on the Moon that is buried just below the surface. The 2,500km-wide structure is believed to be the remains of old rift valleys that later became filled with lava.
Is there gold on the Moon?
The moon isn’t so barren after all. A 2009 NASA mission—in which a rocket slammed into the moon and a second spacecraft studied the blast—revealed that the lunar surface contains an array of compounds, including gold, silver, and mercury, according to PBS.
How many football fields would fit on the Moon?
4,204,640 football fields
There are 4,204,640 football fields between the earth and the moon.
Which part of Moon is unexplored?
The other face, most of which is never visible from the Earth, is therefore called the “far side of the Moon“.