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Lunar Surface Processes And Its Impact On The Earth Essay

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Lunar Surface Processes Complex alterations of the lunar surface occur, despite the fact that lunar processes are much less varied and dynamic than those of the Earth. The most important source of lunar surface alteration, at least over the last three billion years, is evidenced by the Moon’s heavily pocked and cratered surface. The Moon is continuously bombarded by external objects ranging in size from small specks of dust to giant bodies tens of kilometers in diameter. These impacts are governed primarily by gravity as the solar system continues to evolve. Celestial bodies within the solar system are continually being rearranged by close encounters with one another, altering orbits, and over the course of geologic time, causing collisions with other bodies. These collisions result in two possible outcomes: fragmentation or cratering. If the colliding objects are of a similar size, collisional fragmentation and annihilation occur, producing a large number of smaller fragments from both involved bodies. If the objects are of differing sizes, collision results in an impact crater on the target body. Since objects that encounter the Moon are dramatically smaller than the Moon itself, cratering occurs. Typical impact velocities of asteroidal objects on the Moon are between 15 and 25 km/sec. With these high velocities, in combination with the high frequency of impact, the cumulative kinetic energy on lunar surface exceeds the lunar internal energy released by

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