Evolution of the Moon

How did the moon get where it is today?  That is a leading scientific question.  One idea is called "the giant impact" hypothesis, a Mars sized object crashed into Earth and took a big chunk of Earth with it and dragged it out into space.  Basically, the Moon is a large piece of Earth that has been molded into a rocky sphere by gravity.

This simulation using a "sand-like" substance does a good job of showing how an object could have hit the Earth and the resulting debris became the moon.  Since we haven't done any digging on the Moon, it isn't certain that there are any fossils.  But in 2024 NASA is sending men and women to the moon to do extensive experiments to find out what the Moon is really made of.  

From the creation of the Moon we know that during this formation period of our Solar System, planets, asteroids, meteors and other space stuff was not neat and tidy.  With gravity pulling objects in and flinging other objects around there was a lot of stuff flying everywhere.

Our Moon absorbed a lot of that debris, and who's to say, the Moon may have saved us from getting hit on Earth?

We really need the Moon.  Someone asked me today..."What would happen if the Moon were to suddenly be destroyed? What would happen to us?" 

Well, I can make a few inferences...first, we wouldn't have tides.  If we didn't have tides animals that live in water and on land at the same time might not survive because they need water to live in water part of the day to survive. 

Second, the Earth is tilted 23.5 degrees, if the Moon wasn't there we would be wobbling madly all around, kind of like a top that is bobbling around on a table top.  The Moon and Earth share a pull of gravity that keeps us in balance. 

The Moon keeps us stable.  I rather like seeing the Moon in the sky and during a New Moon, I actually kind of miss it being up in the sky.  I'm glad we got the Moon and not Venus.  I really like our little satellite.