Forming the lunar farside highlands by accretion of a companion moon

M. Jutzi () and E. Asphaug
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M. Jutzi: University of California, Santa Cruz, 1156 Highstreet, Santa Cruz, California 95060, USA
E. Asphaug: University of California, Santa Cruz, 1156 Highstreet, Santa Cruz, California 95060, USA

Nature, 2011, vol. 476, issue 7358, 69-72

Abstract: By the light of the moons The Moon is a satellite of two distinct halves. The nearside that faces us all the time is low in altitude, flat and dark in colour, whereas the farside is mountainous and deeply cratered. Martin Jutzi and Erik Asphaug propose that this lunar dichotomy might be the consequence of the late accretion of a companion moon. Companion moons are a common outcome of giant impact and protolunar disk simulations. The new calculations suggest that a collision with a companion at subsonic impact velocity leads to an accretionary pile rather than a crater, resulting in a hemispheric layer consistent with the dimensions and crustal structure of the topography of the farside highlands.

Date: 2011
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DOI: 10.1038/nature10289

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