News Nation Logo

NASA finds how moon got mysterious tattoos?

Lunar Swirls Can Be Tens Of Miles Across And Appear In Groups Or Just As An Isolated Feature. Previous Found That They Appear Where Ancient Bits Of Magnetic Field Are Embedded In The Lunar Crust And The Bright Areas In The Swirls Appear To Be Less Weathered Than Their Surroundings.

PTI | Updated on: 02 May 2016, 01:16:28 PM
NASA finds how moon got mysterious tattoos?

Washington:

Moon has always startled scientists for its unique craters, mysterious tattoos and much more. Now NASA scientists have found new details into Moon’s surface and its mysterious tattoos. Those beautiful swirling patterns of light and dark found at over a hundred locations across the lunar surface have startled the scientists for long.

“These patterns, called ‘lunar swirls,’ appear almost painted on the surface of the Moon,” said John Keller of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Centre in US. “They are unique; we’ve only seen these features on the Moon, and their origin has remained a mystery since their discovery,” Keller said. (Also read. NASA sending crew of astronauts to ISS including Sunita Williams in Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner)

Lunar swirls can be tens of miles across and appear in groups or just as an isolated feature. Previous found that they appear where ancient bits of magnetic field are embedded in the lunar crust and the bright areas in the swirls appear to be less weathered than their surroundings.

Many things can cause material exposed to space to change chemically and darken over time, including impacts from microscopic meteorites and the effects of the solar wind a million-mile-per-hour stream of electrically conducting gas blown from the surface of the Sun. (Also read. NASA astronauts prepare for a trip to ISS on private spacecraft)

The swirls and the magnetic fields could both have formed from plumes of material ejected by comet impacts. Alternatively, perhaps when fine dust particles get lofted by micrometeorite impacts, an existing magnetic field over the swirls sorts them according to their susceptibility to magnetism, forming light and dark patterns with different compositions. Since particles in the solar wind are electrically charged, they respond to magnetic forces. Perhaps the magnetic field shields the surface from weathering by the solar wind.

In the new research, scientists created computer models that provide new insights into how the magnetic shield hypothesis could work. “The problem with the magnetic shield idea is that the embedded magnetic fields on the Moon are very weak  about 300 times weaker than Earth’s magnetic field,” said Bill Farrell of NASA Goddard. “It’s hard to see how they would have the strength to deflect the solar wind ions,” Farrell said. The new models show that the magnetic field can create a strong electric field when the solar wind attempts to flow through. (Also read. NASA to explore Saturn's icy moons for alien life using robotic system)

It is this brawny electric potential of many hundreds of Volts that could deflect and slow particles in the solar wind. This would reduce the weathering from the solar wind, leaving brighter regions over protected areas. New observations from Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) mission, provide support for the magnetic shield hypothesis, but do not rule out the other ideas.

For all the Latest Science News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.

First Published : 30 Apr 2016, 03:14:00 PM

Related Tags:

Moon Nasa

Videos