I love The Police band. The fact is that I like to listen to their “Walking on the Moon” song. I sometimes change the words of the chorus into “Coming back to the Moon.”
Today I will write about coming back to the satellite of Earth. The general aim of writing this post is to explain why we should come back to the Moon. Thanks to the Phaidon “Sun and Moon” book, I gained new knowledge in this theme. Today I will share this knowledge with you, my Dear Friend. Gary E. Lofgren is a geologist who trained Apollo astronauts and was directly involved in the geological aspects of space missions. According to the mentioned-above book and Lofgren’s quotations, it is clear that the study of the Moon is about far more than the Earth’s satellite itself. In interviews recorded by NASA for historical purposes in 2009, Lofgren provided revelatory theory.
He explained that although the Moon, a small body compared to Earth, was formed like the Earth from a hot core volcanic activity, its driving heat energy was quickly dissipated. Planet Earth, contrary to its satellite, through several of on-going geological conditions, is in a state of continued surface renewal. The surface of our planet is mostly younger than three billion years.
On the other hand, the lunar surface is mostly older than three billion years.
The Sun’s particles, the cosmic rays, and solar winds become trapped in the lunar surface since there is no protective atmosphere on the Moon. Thus, the samples from the Moon can provide the key to understanding the Sun.
The history of the Sun is recorded on the surface of the Moon.
Both from NASA and Lofgren’s point of view, a coming back to the Moon would be an obvious move towards a greater understanding of the solar system. Return to the Luna would offer a necessary step in understanding our own planet. The satellite would become a giant mirror in the sky, in which we can see ourselves. Who knows, maybe this reflection help us to save ourselves in the future.
I keep finger crossed for NASA and SpaceX to prepare as soon as possible another journey to the satellite of Earth!
