Large impact cratering during lunar magma ocean solidification
The lunar cratering record is used to constrain the bombardment history of both the Earth and the Moon. However, it is suggested from different perspectives, including impact crater dating, asteroid dynamics, lunar samples, impact basin-forming simulations, and lunar evolution modelling, that the Mo...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
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| Format: | Journal Article |
| Language: | English |
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NATURE PORTFOLIO
2021
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/90190 |
| _version_ | 1848765349364760576 |
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| author | Miljkovic, Katarina Wieczorek, M.A. Laneuville, M. Nemchin, Alexander Bland, Phil Zuber, M.T. |
| author_facet | Miljkovic, Katarina Wieczorek, M.A. Laneuville, M. Nemchin, Alexander Bland, Phil Zuber, M.T. |
| author_sort | Miljkovic, Katarina |
| building | Curtin Institutional Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | The lunar cratering record is used to constrain the bombardment history of both the Earth and the Moon. However, it is suggested from different perspectives, including impact crater dating, asteroid dynamics, lunar samples, impact basin-forming simulations, and lunar evolution modelling, that the Moon could be missing evidence of its earliest cratering record. Here we report that impact basins formed during the lunar magma ocean solidification should have produced different crater morphologies in comparison to later epochs. A low viscosity layer, mimicking a melt layer, between the crust and mantle could cause the entire impact basin size range to be susceptible to immediate and extreme crustal relaxation forming almost unidentifiable topographic and crustal thickness signatures. Lunar basins formed while the lunar magma ocean was still solidifying may escape detection, which is agreeing with studies that suggest a higher impact flux than previously thought in the earliest epoch of Earth-Moon evolution. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T11:33:50Z |
| format | Journal Article |
| id | curtin-20.500.11937-90190 |
| institution | Curtin University Malaysia |
| institution_category | Local University |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T11:33:50Z |
| publishDate | 2021 |
| publisher | NATURE PORTFOLIO |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | curtin-20.500.11937-901902023-02-22T00:52:16Z Large impact cratering during lunar magma ocean solidification Miljkovic, Katarina Wieczorek, M.A. Laneuville, M. Nemchin, Alexander Bland, Phil Zuber, M.T. Science & Technology Multidisciplinary Sciences Science & Technology - Other Topics HEAVY BOMBARDMENT MOON EVOLUTION HISTORY DYNAMICS BASINS EARTH DEFORMATION RELAXATION CHRONOLOGY The lunar cratering record is used to constrain the bombardment history of both the Earth and the Moon. However, it is suggested from different perspectives, including impact crater dating, asteroid dynamics, lunar samples, impact basin-forming simulations, and lunar evolution modelling, that the Moon could be missing evidence of its earliest cratering record. Here we report that impact basins formed during the lunar magma ocean solidification should have produced different crater morphologies in comparison to later epochs. A low viscosity layer, mimicking a melt layer, between the crust and mantle could cause the entire impact basin size range to be susceptible to immediate and extreme crustal relaxation forming almost unidentifiable topographic and crustal thickness signatures. Lunar basins formed while the lunar magma ocean was still solidifying may escape detection, which is agreeing with studies that suggest a higher impact flux than previously thought in the earliest epoch of Earth-Moon evolution. 2021 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/90190 10.1038/s41467-021-25818-7 English http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ NATURE PORTFOLIO fulltext |
| spellingShingle | Science & Technology Multidisciplinary Sciences Science & Technology - Other Topics HEAVY BOMBARDMENT MOON EVOLUTION HISTORY DYNAMICS BASINS EARTH DEFORMATION RELAXATION CHRONOLOGY Miljkovic, Katarina Wieczorek, M.A. Laneuville, M. Nemchin, Alexander Bland, Phil Zuber, M.T. Large impact cratering during lunar magma ocean solidification |
| title | Large impact cratering during lunar magma ocean solidification |
| title_full | Large impact cratering during lunar magma ocean solidification |
| title_fullStr | Large impact cratering during lunar magma ocean solidification |
| title_full_unstemmed | Large impact cratering during lunar magma ocean solidification |
| title_short | Large impact cratering during lunar magma ocean solidification |
| title_sort | large impact cratering during lunar magma ocean solidification |
| topic | Science & Technology Multidisciplinary Sciences Science & Technology - Other Topics HEAVY BOMBARDMENT MOON EVOLUTION HISTORY DYNAMICS BASINS EARTH DEFORMATION RELAXATION CHRONOLOGY |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/90190 |