Moon’s crust thinner than expected – NASA

An artist’s depiction of the twin spacecraft (Ebb
and Flow) that comprise NASA’s Gravity Recovery
 And Interior Laboratory (GRAIL) mission.

The Lunar surface is thinner than previously thought, NASA scientists revealed after a year-long mission to map the moon by two probes ended with a literal bang. The mission was dedicated to uncovering more about the formation of the solar system.

Two probes – nicknamed ‘Ebb’ and ‘Flow’ – completed a programmed crash at the end of their mission, revealing evidence that the Moon’s crust is thinner than expected because of the damage the crash caused beneath the surface, compared to the surface itself.

Scientists were also able to use the distance between the probes to determine more precise measurements of the moon’s crust.

Each probe was the size of a washing machine and flew as low as a few miles above the moon’s tallest mountains. The probes were also tasked with drawing up detailed gravity maps of the moon. They reacted to more intense gravity areas by speeding up, and slowed down in less intense areas.