Unveiling lunar mysteries: Inside the Moon's core
Big news for space fans: scientists have finally confirmed that the Moon has a solid inner core, and it's about as dense as iron.
This discovery, published in May 2023 by Arthur Briaud's team at the French National Centre for Scientific Research, settles years of debate about what's really inside our closest neighbor.
They figured this out using seismic data and lunar laser-ranging experiments from the lunar surface.
Moon's core structure similar to Earth's
Turns out, the Moon's core structure is pretty similar to Earth's—with a solid center surrounded by a fluid outer layer.
The study also spotted signs of mantle overturn (basically, heavy stuff sinking and lighter stuff rising), which helps explain why there are volcanic elements on the Moon's surface.
Knowing all this gives us new clues about why the Moon once had a magnetic field billions of years ago—and why it faded away.