Rapid Fire
NASA’s GRAIL Mission
- 28 May 2025
- 2 min read
NASA’s Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory (GRAIL) mission has revealed notable contrasts between the Moon’s near side and far side due to temperature variations, crust thickness, and ancient volcanic activity.
- GRAIL used twin spacecraft, Ebb and Flow, to study the Moon's internal structure in detail and to produce the highest-resolution gravity map of the moon by mapping lunar gravitational variations.
- Key Findings of GRAIL Mission:
- Tidal Locking: The Moon's rotation period equals its orbit period, so one side always faces Earth and the other permanently hidden.
- Temperature Difference: The Moon’s near side (facing Earth) is warmer, softer, and was once partly molten, while the far side (hidden from Earth) is colder with a thicker crust that blocks magma eruptions.
- Volcanic History: The Moon’s near side features dark lava plains (maria), while the far side has a thicker crust with fewer lava flows.
- Thermal Asymmetry: It estimated a temperature difference of 100–200°C between hemispheres. It found that the Moon’s crust is more porous and thinner than previously believed.
- The phenomenon helps explain the Moon's Janus-faced appearance i.e., one side bright and heavily cratered, the other dark and smooth.
| Read More: NASA's Artemis Program |
