A molten Moon 🌋 Shortly after it formed, the Moon was covered in a global ocean of molten rock or magma. As the magma ocean cooled and solidified, dense minerals sank to form the mantle layer, while less-dense minerals floated to form the surface crust. Later intense bombardment by massive asteroids and comets punched through the crust, blasting out pieces of mantle and scattering them across the lunar surface. Recently, a pair of NASA studies identified the most likely locations to find pieces of mantle on the surface, providing a map for future lunar sample return missions such as those under #Artemis. If collected and analyzed, these fragments from deep within the Moon can provide a better understanding of how the Moon, the Earth, and many other solar system worlds evolved. Credits: NASA/LRO/Lunar Prospector/D. Moriarty #nasa #Moon #lunar #lunarsurface #MoonLovers