SMART-1 on the trail of the Moon's beginnings

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A shocking birth for the Moon SMART-1s researchers will examine the theory that our companion in space was made from the debris of a monstrous collision thousands of millions of years ago - between the newly born Earth and a smaller planet. Credits: ...
A shocking birth for the Moon? SMART-1's researchers will examine the theory that our companion in space was made from the debris of a monstrous collision thousands of millions of years ago - between the newly born Earth and a smaller planet. Credits: AOES Medialab, ESA 2002

The D-CIXS instrument on ESA's Moon mission SMART-1 has produced the first detection from orbit of calcium on the lunar surface. By doing this, the instrument has taken a step towards answering the old question: did the Moon form from part of the Earth?


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