The moon impacts the life on Earth. It is being claimed on social media that the moon is shrinking due to seismic activities. This was discovered by examining photos of thrust faults on the lunar surface.
According to the BBC, the moon has been shrinking in radius over the last several hundred million years. Currently, its core has shrunk by about 50 metres, i.e., 164 feet. Scientists have found this to be true after analysing thrust fault pictures on the moon’s surface. These pictures were taken by Apollo astronauts and recently by NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter. Researchers found some flaws in the seismometers left on the moon during the Apollo era.
Scientists have also found that the moon has an inner core with a radius of about 500 kilometres. It is partially molten but much less dense than the Earth’s core. Its inner part is still very cold and is shrinking. Its outer part, i.e., the crust, is very fragile. So, as the inner part shrinks, the crust breaks, resulting in some parts of the crust being pulled towards the core. Some of the lines on the moon are cracks and wrinkles formed by that slow contraction. Evidence suggests that this process continues even today. The stress on the moon due to the gravity of the Earth has a greater effect.
Now the question is, will it affect humans? According to scientists, this is not necessary. The rate of shrinkage of the moon is prolonged. For now, due to the shrinkage of the moon, the apparent size of the moon in the sky will not change so much that it starts affecting humans. Since its mass is not decreasing, the gravitational force between the Earth and the Moon will remain the same. When the gravitational force is the same, its effect on the Earth will not be negative. The size of the moon’s orbit is increasing by about 3.8 cm per year. That is why it is moving away from us. Due to this, the rotation of the Earth is slowing down. This affects the length of the day and about 2.3 milliseconds are added to the length of a day on Earth.
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