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Chapter 10: Problem 34

In the maria, the lunar regolith is about 2 to 8 meters deep. In the lunar highlands, by contrast, it may be more than 15 meters deep. Explain how the different ages of the maria and highlands can account for these differences.

Short Answer

Expert verified
The lunar highlands are much older than the maria, leading to a more extended period of meteorite impacts. These impacts gradually create the regolith, so highlands have a deeper layer of regolith due to the higher number of meteorite impacts over time. Conversely, the maria are younger, so there have been fewer impacts and thus, a shallower accumulation of regolith.

Step by step solution

01

Understanding Lunar Topography

The moon's surface is divided into two main types: light highlands and dark maria. Highlands are the oldest and most cratered regions, and maria are younger and smoother areas with fewer craters.
02

Depth of Lunar Regolith

Regolith, the loose, fragmented material on the moon's surface, is deeper in older highlands because it's had more time to accumulate. In contrast, maria have less depth because they are younger - this means there's been less time for regolith to build up.
03

Impact of Meteorites

Meteorites have been impacting the Moon's surface for billions of years, breaking up rocks into a mixture of dust, soil, and broken rock referred as lunar regolith. More impacts result in a deeper layer of regolith. Because the maria are younger, they have been exposed to this rain of meteorites for a shorter period and therefore have a thinner layer of regolith.
04

Summary

The age difference between the lunar highlands and maria results in a variation in the depth of lunar regolith. With more time, like in the highlands, there have been more meteorite impacts that result in a thicker layer of regolith. On the other hand, in the maria, which are younger, there have been fewer meteorite impacts that lead to a thinner layer of Regolith.

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Most popular questions from this chapter

Use the Starry Night Enthusiast \({ }^{\mathrm{TM}}\) program to observe the apparent change in size of the Moon as seen from the surface of the Earth. Click the Home button in the toolbar. Stop the time flow by clicking the Stop time button (the button with a square icon in the Time Flow Rate section of the toolbar). Click each field of the Time and Date display pane in the toolbar and use the keyboard to set the time to \(12: 00: 00 \mathrm{~A} . \mathrm{M}\). and the date to \(\mathrm{O}\) tober 16,2006 . You can now set up the view of the Moon as if you were observing from a transparent Earth in continuous darkness. Open the Options pane by clicking its tab on the left border of the view window. In the Local View layer of the Options pane, uncheck the boxes beside the Daylight and Local Horizon options. Open the Find pane and click the menu button at the left of the entry for the Moon and select Magnify from the menu to display a stationary image of the magnified Moon in the center of the view. Notice the Moon's phase. (a) Select Options > Solar System > PlanetsMoons... from the menu. In the Planets-Moons dialog box, click the slide control next to the Show dark side label near the top of the window and adjust the control all the way to the right (Brighter) side of the scale. Then click the OK button to close the dialog box. Note that the image of the Moon now appears full because Starry Night Enthusiast TM has artificially brightened the dark side of the image of the Moon, effectively removing the appearance of the Moon's phases. (b) Use the + button in the Zoom section of the toolbar to adjust the field of view to about \(55^{\prime} \times 45^{\prime}\). Starry Night Enthusiast \({ }^{\mathrm{TM}}\) can display a reference field of view (FOV) upon this sky. Open the FOV pane by clicking its tab. Select the 30 Arcminutes option. Then click the FOV tab to close the pane. (c) The final view is of the Moon, its dark side artificially brightened, as it would be seen from your home location if the Earth were airless and transparent, surrounded by a yellow FOV circle 30 arcminutes in diameter. Note the size of the Moon relative to this reference circle. Set the Time Flow Rate in the toolbar to 1 minute. Run Time Forward for least 24 hours and observe the apparent size of the Moon relative to the reference circle. (c) Note that the apparent size of the Moon changes somewhat over the course of a day (of simulated time). Explain in terms of the Earth's rotation. (Hint: In this view, Starry Night Enthusiast \({ }^{\text {Tm }}\) has made the Earth transparent, so you can see objects that would normally be below the horizon. As the Earth rotates, your observing location on the surface is carried along and your distance from the Moon changes.) (d) Change the Time Flow Rate to 1 day and again click the Run Time Forward button. Does the apparent size of the Moon always stay the same, or does it vary? Explain what this tells you about the shape of the Moon's orbit.

Why does the sky look black on the Moon even during daytime?

In a whimsical moment during the Apollo 14 mission, astronaut Alan Shepard hit two golf balls over the lunar surface. Give two reasons why they traveled much farther than golf balls do on Earth.

Describe the kinds of features that can be seen on the Moon with a small telescope.

Use the Starry Night Enthusiast \({ }^{\mathrm{TM}}\) program to examine the Moon. Select Solar System > Moon from the Favourites menu. (If desired, remove the image of the astronaut by clicking on Feet in the View menu) You can rotate the image of the Moon by placing the mouse cursor over the image, holding down the mouse button, and moving the mouse. (On a two-button mouse, hold down the left mouse button.) (a) From what you can see in the image, what evidence can you find that the Moon is geologically inactive? Explain. (b) Spreading outward from some of the largest craters on the Moon are straight lines of lightcolored material called rays that were caused by material ejected outward by the impact that caused the crater. Rotate the Moon around to see the entire illuminated surface. Can you find any rays on the Moon? Zoom in on the Moon to examine various surface features such as craters and mountain ranges. Estimate the length of several rays extending from craters by measuring their length on the screen with a ruler and comparing them to the diameter of the Moon, which is about 30 minutes of arc when seen from Earth. Collaborative Exercise
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