The Moon is "rusting" due to winds blowing from Earth

The surface of the Moon has become rusty, and the culprit is the winds blowing from Earth. According to new data published recently in the scientific journal Geophysical Research Letters, oxygen particles escaping from Earth's atmosphere are capable of turning lunar minerals into hematite — a mineral commonly known as rust or iron oxide.

Szilyan Xin, a planetary scientist from Macau University of Science and Technology, said: "This discovery opens a new chapter in understanding the close relationship between our planet and the Moon."

For a long time, the Moon and Earth have been exposed to the "solar wind" — a stream of particles from our star, the Sun. However, about five days each lunar month, Earth blocks the solar wind, and the Moon receives winds from Earth — ions of hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, and others that used to be part of Earth's atmosphere. These particles reach the Moon, mix with the upper layers of its soil, and cause chemical interactions.

This discovery supports data gathered during the Chandrayaan-1 space mission, where Indian scientists discovered hematite on the Moon’s polar regions. Hematite is rich in iron and forms through the interaction of water and oxygen. However, the source of oxygen was a mystery given the Moon’s near absence of moisture. New laboratory experiments have now confirmed that oxygen is delivered to the Moon via winds blowing from Earth, reports Rambler.ru.