Moon formation may have occurred in five hours after planetary collision

New simulations conducted by the Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) and the University of Arizona suggest that the Moon may have formed much faster than previously thought. The research indicates the natural satellite could have emerged nearly intact approximately five hours after a massive planetary collision.

The study revisits the ‘Giant Impact Hypothesis,’ which proposes that a Mars-sized celestial body named Theia struck the early Earth. Unlike older simulations that disregarded the geological resistance of the materials involved due to the extreme energy of the impact, this new research utilizes modern computational techniques to account for how geological resistance varies with temperature.

Lead researcher Adeene Denton noted that the pre-existing geology of the proto-Moon is a critical factor. The findings show that temperature plays a decisive role, as warmer bodies are more fragile than colder ones, significantly altering whether the impact destroys the colliding body or allows parts of it to remain intact during the formation process.