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The Moon is made of... Cheese!
Friday, August 17, 2007
The landings of Apollo 11 and Apollo 12 on the moon sent shock waves through the moon's surface, which were detected on a seismograph. By measuring the speed of shock waves through rock (known as the seismic velocity), the density of the rock can be estimated. The higher the seismic velocity, the denser the rock. Seismic velocities for moon "rock" were compared to those of rocks from various locations. The results were published in Science, and are shown below:
Seismic Velocities
Lunar________________Seismic Velocity (km/sec)
Basalt 10017.....................1.84
Basalt 10046.....................1.25
Near surface layer..............1.2
Terrestrial rocks_______Seismic Velocity (km/sec)
Granite...............................5.9
Gneiss................................4.9
Basalt.................................5.8
Sandstone...........................4.9
Marble................................6.02
Limestone...........................5.06-5.97
It is clear from this that moon "rock" is considerably less dense than any type of rock found on earth. The scientists then decided to examine the seismic velocities of various cheeses from around the world. Some of the results are shown below:
Cheese_______________Seismic Velocity (km/sec)
Sapsego (Swiss).................2.12
Romano (Italy)....................1.74
Cheddar (Vermont).............1.72
Muenster (Wisconsin)..........1.57
The seismic velocity of moon "rock" is much closer to cheese than any rock found on earth.
If you need more proof, go to Google Moon and have a closer look (hint: full zoom) on the moon, when much to my surprise there it was...
Confirmation that the Moon is in fact made of cheese. Not myth... fact! :P