How do scientist believe Earth's moon was created?

Answer 1

Theories of the Origin of the Moon

After years of research, studying gamma rays and rock samples from the Earth and the Moon, it is generally accepted that the ages of the Earth and the Moon are the same. There are several theories on its formation.

• IMPACT : One theory is that it was formed from the Earth's crust, following the impact of a large (Mars-sized) asteroid. A long string of rocky fragments were blown out from the Earth in the form of a trail, which coalesced into the Moon. Supporting this, the Earth has a large iron core but the Moon does not : the Earth's iron would have already sunken into the core by the time the giant impact happened.
• COACCRETION : Another theory, advocated by Edward Roche, is known as coaccretion. It proposes the concurrent information of both the Earth and the Moon from clouds of space material. As a result the new Moon gets spun by the Earth's gravity field and starts to circle the Earth. The fact is that all smaller solar bodies appear to be irregularly shaped, but larger ones are nearly spherical.
• FISSION : The fission theory states that the Moon long ago split off from a fast-rotating Earth, like mud flung from a spinning bicycle wheel. The present Pacific Ocean basin is the most popular site for the part of the Earth from which the Moon may have come. This is not supported by evidence of higher rotational speed in the past.
• CAPTURE : If the Moon formed separately, it could have come close enough to the Earth's gravitational field to be trapped. The angle of orbital approach would have to be within narrow parameters in relationship to the moving centre of the orbiting Earth. The chance of this occurrence is very low without some other gravitational interaction.

The prevailing theory at present is some form of early impact, possibly by a co-orbiting object that fused with the Earth after the collision, but that blasted loose the material which later formed the Moon.

Most widely accepted scientific explanation

It is believed that the moon formed around 4.5 billion years ago and only a few hundred million years after the Earth.

Today, based on the evidence, the most widely accepted scientific explanation for the formation of the Moon is called the Giant Impact Hypothesis. According to this model, the Moon formed from debris that was the result of a huge collision. Not long after Earth formed, a proto-planet about the size of Mars (often called Theia) smashed into it at a low angle and relatively low speed. The cataclysmic impact rendered the entire Earth molten, and caused significant amounts of its mantle and crust to be blown into space. The metallic core of the impactor sunk through the Earth's mantle to fuse with Earth's core, thereby depleting the Moon of metallic material and explaining its unusual composition. The force of the collision is also believed to have been responsible for tilting the Earth at angle of 23.5 degrees, allowing for seasons.

The debris from the collision began orbiting the Earth and gathered together through gravity to form a sphere: the Moon. The Moon formed surprisingly quickly, possibly in less than a month but no more than a century. It started out closer to the Earth than it is today, and must have caused massive tides. Slowly, due to conservation fo angular momentum, it moved further and further out until it got to the familiar orbit it is now. Even today, the Moon is receding from Earth by an inch and a half every year, but it will take billions of years for the Moon to escape from Earth's gravity altogether.

There are still some problems with the Giant Impact hypothesis that need to be overcome. For example, the ratios of the Moon's volatile elements (such as water) are not explained by this model. Also, the moon's oxygen isotopic ratios are essentially identical to Earth's when they should be different. Regardless, the Giant Impact model is currently the best explanation scientists have based on the evidence that has been gathered, and holds more weight than the other theories for the Moon's formation.

• The Fission Theory: This theory proposes that the Moon was once part of the Earth and somehow separated from the Earth early in the history of the solar system. The present Pacific Ocean basin is the most popular site for the part of the Earth from which the Moon came. This theory was thought possible since the Moon's composition resembles that of the Earth's mantle and a rapidly spinning Earth could have cast off the Moon from its outer layers. However, the present-day Earth-Moon system should contain "fossil evidence" of this rapid spin and it does not. Also, this hypothesis does not have a natural explanation for the extra baking the lunar material has received.
• The Capture Theory: This theory proposes that the Moon was formed somewhere else in the solar system, and was later captured by the gravitational field of the Earth. The Moon's different chemical composition could be explained if it formed elsewhere in the solar system, however, capture into the Moon's present orbit is very improbable. Something would have to slow it down by just the right amount at just the right time, and scientists are reluctant to believe in such "fine tuning". Also, this hypothesis does not have a natural explanation for the extra baking the lunar material has received.
• The Condensation Theory: This theory proposes that the Moon and the Earth condensed individually from the nebula that formed the solar system, with the Moon formed in orbit around the Earth. However, if the Moon formed in the vicinity of the Earth it should have nearly the same composition. Specifically, it should possess a significant iron core, and it does not. Also, this hypothesis does not have a natural explanation for the extra baking the lunar material has received.

Answer 2

A hypothetical protoplanet (Theia) hit the Earth really hard during the Cryptic Era of the Hadean Eon (the Earth was still mostly molten, and completely void of life.) The debris was flung out so far, some of it went out into space and coalesced into the Moon.

Answer 3

The moon was created by god ruler of heaven and earth

Answer 4

A collision - which also started the Earth's rotation.

Answer 5

As of 2017, the way that seems most likely, for the formation of the Moon, is a giant impact - i.e., an object the size of a small planet collided with Earth.

Answer 6

The moon was created by God, it clearly states that in The Bible

Answer 7

theroes show during the big bang how the universe was created it floated to earths gravity. also people say earth spun so fast a big chunk of rock fell out of it