One international effort to find asteroids that might hit Earth was the 2016 discovery of the asteroid Kamoa'aleva. (Kamo'oalewa) Its diameter is estimated at 40-100 meters. It rotates very quickly to position the asteroid. Then, in 2021, another team of scientists found evidence that the Kamui Liva formation resembles rocks found on Earth's moon.
Recently, a small team of international planetary scientists reporting in the journal Nature Astronomy uncovered evidence supporting the theory that the asteroid Kamoa'aleva was ejected from the Moon. The latter conducted an extensive study of asteroids and possible locations on the Moon. Where might the asteroid Kamoa'Aleva come from? The team created a computer model to simulate the accident. This could eject a piece of the Moon's surface the size of the asteroid Kamoa Aleva into space. The team was even able to estimate the likely size of another asteroid that would hit the Moon. After that, the size of the holes left behind will be determined.
Scientists also noted that the incident must have occurred recently. The team also compared samples of lunar material brought back to Earth. Spectral similarities were found between samples taken from the Giordano Bruno crater and the asteroid Camualeva, both of which also contain the mineral pyroxene.
(Credit: Natural Astronomy (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41550-024-02258-z)
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