Chapter 1: Understanding the Moon's Surface Differences

A curious inquiry recently came to our attention: Why does the far side of the Moon appear less damaged, with fewer craters compared to the side that faces Earth? The disparities between the two hemispheres of the Moon are indeed striking, as illustrated in the comparative images below.

Contrary to popular belief, the far side is not devoid of craters. In fact, it is heavily cratered, far more so than the near side. The near side, despite its more battered appearance, has a noticeably lower density of craters. The extensive dark patches observed on the Moon’s surface, known as lunar maria, were once thought to be filled with water, although this misconception has since been dispelled.

The far side is actually dotted with a multitude of relatively small craters. These maria, which are large plains that sit significantly lower than the surrounding terrain, are believed to have formed from impacts that created deep craters filled with lava from the Moon's mantle. This lava, upon solidifying, took on a darker hue compared to the rest of the lunar surface.

Most of the intense bombardments that shaped the lunar surface occurred during the early formation of the Solar System. The impacts that formed the lunar seas took place much later and were thus less severe, resulting in fewer craters on these regions.

However, why are the lunar seas predominantly located on the near side, with very few on the far side? There are two main theories addressing this question.

One hypothesis suggests that during the formation of the maria, the Moon was tidally locked to Earth, meaning it always presented the same face toward our planet. This alignment may have caused the crust on the near side to become thinner, allowing for lava to erupt during impacts, unlike the far side.

Another theory posits that only a few large impacts led to the formation of the lunar seas, with the resulting craters subsequently filled with lava. The solidified lava is denser than the continental rocks, creating an uneven distribution of mass across the Moon. This imbalance may have contributed to the tidal locking effect, ensuring that the side with the seas remained fixed toward Earth. The validity of these theories remains a topic of ongoing research.

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