https://youtu.be/aiVow0QoxIU

This article investigates a long-standing mystery surrounding the Moon's "lopsided" geology and how it came to have such high concentrations of titanium on its near side. Scientists generally agree that the Moon formed from debris after a small planet collided with Earth billions of years ago. As the molten rock cooled and solidified, it formed the Moon’s mantle and crust. However, denser minerals containing titanium and iron, such as ilmenite, crystallized deeper below the surface. The heavier ilmenite created gravitational instability, causing it to sink into the Moon’s interior, mix with the mantle, and resurface as titanium-rich lava flows. This process essentially turned the Moon "inside out". The article explores different theories about how this dense material sank, where it went, and when it happened. Researchers compared simulations of a sinking ilmenite-rich layer to data from NASA's GRAIL mission, which measured the Moon's gravity field. Their analyses revealed a network of dense material beneath the crust, which aligned with the predictions from computer models. This finding suggests that the ilmenite-rich layer migrated to the Moon’s near side and sank into the interior, leaving behind remnants that cause anomalies in the Moon's gravity field. Scientists believe this process occurred before 4.22 billion years ago, based on the location of large impact basins on the near side. The researchers concluded that the Moon's "lopsided" geology, with its thinner crust, lower elevation, and abundance of titanium on the near side, is likely connected to this mantle overturn. P. Geo. Ricardo A Valls, M. Sc. and Geo Gadfly Valls Geoconsultant ORCID ID- https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5421-0914 Scopus Author ID: 7003369619/35335510700 ResearcherID: S-6604-2018 If you like this content, please "buy me a coffee" https://www.buymeacoffee.com/goldendroplets