New data from lunar missions has revealed surprising discoveries about the Moon—ones that could completely alter future space mission plans. From unexpected underground structures to strange surface activity, scientists are rethinking how we explore and use the Moon as a launchpad for deeper space travel.
In this video, we break down the latest Moon findings, what they mean for NASA and private missions, and some jaw-dropping Moon facts you’ve never heard. The Moon may be familiar… but it’s far from fully understood. Animation is created by Bright Side.
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For more videos and articles visit: http://www.brightside.me
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This video is made for entertainment purposes. We do not make any warranties about the completeness, safety and reliability. Any action you take upon the information in this video is strictly at your own risk, and we will not be liable for any damages or losses. It is the viewer's responsibility to use judgement, care and precaution if you plan to replicate.
In this video, we break down the latest Moon findings, what they mean for NASA and private missions, and some jaw-dropping Moon facts you’ve never heard. The Moon may be familiar… but it’s far from fully understood. Animation is created by Bright Side.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Music from TheSoul Sound: https://thesoul-sound.com/
Check our Bright Side podcast on Spotify and leave a positive review! https://open.spotify.com/show/0hUkPxD34jRLrMrJux4VxV
Subscribe to Bright Side: https://goo.gl/rQTJZz
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Our Social Media:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/brightplanet/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brightside.official
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@brightside.official?lang=en
Stock materials (photos, footages and other):
https://www.depositphotos.com
https://www.shutterstock.com
https://www.eastnews.ru
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
For more videos and articles visit: http://www.brightside.me
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This video is made for entertainment purposes. We do not make any warranties about the completeness, safety and reliability. Any action you take upon the information in this video is strictly at your own risk, and we will not be liable for any damages or losses. It is the viewer's responsibility to use judgement, care and precaution if you plan to replicate.
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FunTranscript
00:00:00About 8 billion inhabitants of planet Earth found out the same terrible news in one day.
00:00:06Someone saw it on TV.
00:00:08Others heard it on the phone while scrolling through social media or listening to music.
00:00:12Some witnessed this news in a dream while sleeping.
00:00:15Someone's voice said it in all languages to ensure everyone understood it.
00:00:20I have good news and bad news for you.
00:00:22Let's start with the bad news.
00:00:24You're all characters in YouTube videos in which your planet gets into a situation where the moon breaks in half.
00:00:30For the audience, it will be a hypothetical story.
00:00:33But for you, these events will become a reality.
00:00:36The good news is that...
00:00:38I was joking.
00:00:39There is no good news.
00:00:40But don't worry.
00:00:41The apocalypse won't start on your planet.
00:00:43Maybe just a little bit.
00:00:45Have a nice day.
00:00:47At first, the entire population panics.
00:00:50Then, a few days later, everyone calms down.
00:00:52Maybe it was a mass hallucination, and the moon will be all right.
00:00:55But at this moment, scientists have discovered the danger.
00:00:59A colossal meteorite is flying towards us from the distant depths of space.
00:01:04This meteorite is super fast and pretty flat, but has sharp edges.
00:01:08Fortunately, it will miss the Earth by a few thousand miles.
00:01:12But the moon won't be that lucky.
00:01:14The meteorite flies through our Earth's only natural satellite directly in the middle.
00:01:19So, it passes through the moon, sweeps past our planet, and flies away into distant space.
00:01:25At this moment, all people can't take their eyes off the moon.
00:01:29The meteorite cuts it perfectly in half.
00:01:32Gently, clearly, painlessly.
00:01:35So, what shall we do now?
00:01:37Will the Earth survive this?
00:01:38Our satellite breaks into two equal parts.
00:01:42But, fortunately, they don't fly away from each other.
00:01:45The moon's great gravity attracts them back like a magnet.
00:01:48Scientists are sure that the parts will connect in a couple of billion years,
00:01:52and the moon will become the same as it used to be.
00:01:55But the coolest thing is that people won't feel any changes.
00:01:58Everyone around the world will celebrate this good news.
00:02:01The voice was wrong.
00:02:02But then, another problem appears.
00:02:05A massive meteorite in the form of a shoe is flying from the deepest space to us.
00:02:11It enters our solar system and approaches the Earth at high speed.
00:02:16The space boot crashes into one half of the moon and then flies away.
00:02:20Now, the moon is definitely breaking into two parts.
00:02:23The first half remains in the same place.
00:02:26The second one is flying towards us.
00:02:28A small meteor shower begins on Earth because of the falling moon fragments.
00:02:33But it's not so bad.
00:02:34Most of these rocks are burning up in the atmosphere.
00:02:37But almost the entire split-off half is falling apart around the orbit of our planet.
00:02:42It forms a stone belt.
00:02:45Now the Earth is like Saturn.
00:02:48Rotating fragments destroy part of our artificial satellites.
00:02:52Communication and the Internet work inconsistently.
00:02:54It takes people a couple of years to restore a stable connection.
00:02:59The International Space Station no longer exists.
00:03:03Luckily, all the astronauts managed to return to Earth before half the moon got to them.
00:03:08So, moon rocks are flying around the planet and people see half the moon in the sky.
00:03:13Life doesn't change much for the first few days.
00:03:15But those who live on the coast of the seas and oceans notice the consequences.
00:03:19The moon used to influence the tides.
00:03:22It was flying around the Earth and made oceans take an oval shape.
00:03:26There were tides on the side where the moon was closer.
00:03:29There were ebbs on the opposite side.
00:03:31But now, this schedule is wrong.
00:03:34Half of the moon attracts less water.
00:03:36Yes, the moon lost half its weight and began approaching the Earth.
00:03:40But its gravitational force has become weaker.
00:03:45Seabirds, many species of fish, sea turtles, and other coastal animals may not survive these changes.
00:03:51Their natural instincts associated with the moon help them determine the time for getting food, breeding, and flying south.
00:04:00For example, tiny turtles expect a strong tide in the morning.
00:04:03They run to the water, but the water doesn't reach them.
00:04:06Turtles can't hide in the ocean in time and become dinner for seagulls.
00:04:11Crabs can't lay eggs because the tide has started earlier than usual.
00:04:15Wolves go mad in the woods.
00:04:17They howl loudly every night and can't stop.
00:04:20The whole natural world can't understand what's going on.
00:04:24The human body is also feeling some discomfort.
00:04:28Many people have low and high blood pressure, and some experience severe headaches.
00:04:34Half of the moon changes the entire ecosystem of the planet.
00:04:37Adapting to new conditions will take several tens, maybe hundreds of years.
00:04:41A couple of weeks pass, and people notice the days are now shorter.
00:04:47The moon always slowed the Earth's rotation and made one day last 24 hours.
00:04:52The Earth is spinning faster now.
00:04:55The night and the morning come earlier than everyone is used to.
00:05:00Earth's rotation speed has increased and reduced the number of hours per day to 15.
00:05:05People suffer from insomnia or oversleeping.
00:05:08The body needs time to get used to it.
00:05:11Work schedules are changing all over the world.
00:05:14Previously, people came to the office at 9 and left at 6.
00:05:17Now, they arrive at 7 and leave at 2 p.m.
00:05:21Sleep time got shorter, and people are really sad because of this.
00:05:25Progress slows down because of the short working time.
00:05:30The technologies of the future are now 20 to 30 years late.
00:05:34Hourly pay remains the same, so bosses now pay less for fewer working hours.
00:05:39The whole moon stabilized the weather and climate on the planet.
00:05:43Look at Mars.
00:05:44It has two small moons.
00:05:46They quickly spin around it and rock Mars around on its axis.
00:05:49As a result, strong winds, sandstorms, and thunderstorms often happen on the red planet.
00:05:57Now, the half of the moon that approached us takes the Earth out of stable rotation.
00:06:01This changes the seasonal temperatures in the world.
00:06:04It even gets hotter in hot places.
00:06:06And snowstorms are raging in cold regions.
00:06:09There are short, massive downpours instead of sunny weather.
00:06:12A typical breeze can grow into a hurricane and small waves into a tsunami.
00:06:17The seasons are changing faster now.
00:06:21Winters are colder.
00:06:22And summers are hotter.
00:06:25Changing the rotation of the planet affects the Earth's magnetic field.
00:06:29Since the compass and navigation systems are unstable now,
00:06:33we need to recalculate where the north and south are.
00:06:37Birds can't fly south to wait out the winter since they don't know what direction to fly.
00:06:41Their inner compass is broken.
00:06:44Several hundred years have passed.
00:06:46People are entirely accustomed to the new conditions on Earth.
00:06:50New species of animals and fish have appeared.
00:06:53Birds can navigate the sky by the moon again.
00:06:56The planet's economy has been restored.
00:06:59Hourly wages have become higher.
00:07:01People now get enough sleep from five to six hours a day and work for four to five hours.
00:07:06The reduction of day and night has also affected the entertainment industry.
00:07:13Movies now last one hour.
00:07:14One episode of some TV series lasts 30 minutes.
00:07:18Life goes faster.
00:07:20An average person now lives to be 96 years old.
00:07:23In fact, the passage of time hasn't changed at all.
00:07:26Its calculus did.
00:07:27Several thousand years have passed.
00:07:30People look different now.
00:07:33Now they have big eyes that absorb more light.
00:07:36Half of the moon doesn't shine as bright as the whole thing.
00:07:39So the nights have become darker.
00:07:42It took the human eye a couple of thousand years to develop the ability to see clearly in this new dark.
00:07:47Animals need to navigate better in these conditions so their eyes have become larger and more sensitive.
00:07:55During all this time, people have cleared the orbit of moon rocks.
00:07:59Several space stations fly around our planet.
00:08:02And again, people hear this strange voice that once told them that they were all characters in one hypothetical YouTube video.
00:08:08This time, the voice says,
00:08:11Your story ends because the video ends.
00:08:13I'm sorry.
00:08:14Good night.
00:08:15Recently, Chinese scientists discovered something interesting on the moon.
00:08:21An unusual crystal.
00:08:23Moreover, they found out that this crystal contains an element that can literally replace nuclear fuel.
00:08:29Let's find out more.
00:08:32The composition of the moon has long remained a mystery to us.
00:08:36Half a century has already passed since the Apollo mission.
00:08:39Unfortunately, we haven't traveled to the moon much since then.
00:08:42So, it's not surprising that it's not so easy for us to study it.
00:08:47But, recently, we've made a breakthrough in this area.
00:08:50In December 2020, Chinese scientists sent the Chang'a 5 probe to the moon.
00:08:56The mission was named after the ancient Chinese deity of the moon, Chang'a.
00:09:01Quite poetic, isn't it?
00:09:02Anyway, after the probe went to the nearest side of the moon,
00:09:05it spent several days digging through the surface and rocks and then returned to Earth.
00:09:10In total, it collected about 4 pounds of various lunar rocks,
00:09:15like basalt, solidified lava, and so on.
00:09:19And, yeah, maybe it doesn't sound too impressive, but it's actually a mini-breakthrough.
00:09:24After all, we hadn't received any lunar samples since 1976.
00:09:28And these samples are very important for learning the history of our world.
00:09:34We've been struggling for many years to find out, for example, how the moon was born at all.
00:09:40Yes, there were a lot of theories, but we still couldn't find any proper evidence for any of them.
00:09:45But thanks to the latest missions and some computer simulations, scientists finally found out the truth.
00:09:53The moon was born when some random dwarf planet crashed into our Earth many millions of years ago.
00:09:59This dwarf planet was slightly smaller than Mars.
00:10:02The fragments of the Earth went into space, but some of them stayed in our orbit.
00:10:07Then they stuck together and formed the moon.
00:10:10It sounds horrifying, but in reality, the birth of the moon was the best thing to ever happen to our planet.
00:10:17If it weren't for this beautiful satellite, all our oceans would be small puddles.
00:10:22Life wouldn't have appeared on Earth at all.
00:10:25So this is already an amazing discovery.
00:10:28But that's still not all.
00:10:30Studying the collected rocks, scientists from the Beijing Research Institute discovered something unusual.
00:10:36A rare lunar crystal.
00:10:39Looks pretty boring, doesn't it?
00:10:41Just some tiny transparent monocrystal about the thickness of a human hair.
00:10:46We've already found such things on the moon before.
00:10:48These crystals were formed as a result of volcanic activity, just like some garnets on the Earth.
00:10:54And yep, the place where they discovered these crystals also suffered from volcanoes, 1.2 billion years ago.
00:11:01That means that this tiny baby is over a billion years old.
00:11:07But that's not the most important thing.
00:11:10It's the fact that this crystal is made of a unique material, the one that we've never seen before.
00:11:16Researchers from the International Mineralogical Association have confirmed that such a composition can't be found anywhere on Earth.
00:11:24The crystal was named Chongacite, again after the same moon deity.
00:11:28And this is another achievement.
00:11:32This is the sixth previously unknown mineral that we've found on the moon, and the first one found by China.
00:11:39Now, it has become the third country in the world to make such a lunar discovery.
00:11:44However, this tiny crystal still wasn't the only remarkable thing they found.
00:11:48After studying this gem and about 140,000 other lunar particles, scientists have discovered something else.
00:11:56They found helium-3.
00:12:00Why is it so important?
00:12:02Because this is one of the elements that feed the sun and other stars in our universe.
00:12:06We tend to say stuff like, put out the sun, the sun is burning, and so on.
00:12:14And this is one of the reasons why many people actually think that the sun is a huge fireball.
00:12:20But it's not.
00:12:21Its burning is actually a completely different process, which is called nuclear fusion.
00:12:27The process itself is quite simple.
00:12:31During this reaction, hydrogen in the star turns into helium.
00:12:35But this simple process is actually one of the most violent and insane reactions in the universe.
00:12:41There's a real boiling broth of particles inside the sun.
00:12:46The hydrogen nuclei that jump and rush there are constantly repelling each other, since all of them are positively charged.
00:12:52And so they could continue to boil and chill around without bothering anyone, if it weren't for the stars.
00:13:00The stars turned out to be cheaters.
00:13:02They have such strong gravity that they basically grab billions of these little atoms and squeeze them together.
00:13:09Combining with each other, these atoms create new heavy elements, like the mentioned helium.
00:13:15And when this happens, they throw a lot of energy into space.
00:13:20And that's how the sun burns.
00:13:21At the same time, it spreads so much energy that we can't even imagine.
00:13:27Okay, so what is helium-3?
00:13:30Well, this is an element to which even the sun can say,
00:13:33Whoa, dude, you should calm down.
00:13:36The fusion of helium-3 atoms releases even more energy than in typical nuclear fusion.
00:13:42And most importantly, it doesn't pollute the atmosphere with harmful things, like radiation.
00:13:47We have very, very little helium-3 on Earth.
00:13:52Its prevalence in our atmosphere is about one in a million.
00:13:56And besides, it's constantly trying to escape from us back into space.
00:14:00Probably feel some bad vibes from us.
00:14:02However, scientists have recently found out that there's a place that contains a lot of this element.
00:14:10Yep, you guessed it.
00:14:12It's the moon.
00:14:12We think that there's more helium-3 on the moon than on Earth because of the solar winds.
00:14:19The sun has been hammering on the moon with its helium-3 for billions of years.
00:14:24So now, it's all over the place.
00:14:27It's still not too much if you compare it, for example, with Jupiter or Saturn.
00:14:31But don't forget how much energy it can release.
00:14:34For your information, with only 25 tons of helium-3, it's possible to provide America with energy for an entire year.
00:14:44Now, there are 35,000 tons of it here on Earth and more than a million tons on the moon.
00:14:51Only these sources could feed the entire U.S. for thousands of years.
00:14:56So basically, in the future, helium-3 may become a new source of fuel.
00:15:00And it's better than nuclear fuel in basically everything.
00:15:05Helium-3 won't leave any harmful waste and radiation.
00:15:09It's more powerful and not that dangerous.
00:15:11In other words, this environmentally friendly and efficient energy could be a revolution for our planet.
00:15:18Sounds cool, huh?
00:15:20So, what are we waiting for?
00:15:22Grab the shovels, you might say.
00:15:24But there's a little problem here.
00:15:26Unfortunately, we haven't yet come up with anything as wildly strong and hot as the stars.
00:15:33To use helium-3, we need crazy temperatures and pressure.
00:15:37We need a thermonuclear reactor, and we have no idea how to build it.
00:15:42Yet.
00:15:43And, even if we could heat it up to such temperatures and get the needed pressure,
00:15:47we still don't really know how to handle helium-3 correctly.
00:15:50Therefore, even if we have an infinite amount of helium-3, we still won't be able to use it.
00:15:58But still, there's a great power behind helium-3.
00:16:01So it's not surprising that different countries have already started a race for nuclear resources.
00:16:07Now that Chang'e 5 has discovered a new helium-3 deposit on the nearest side of the moon,
00:16:12this race can become downright global.
00:16:15For example, China already plans a new lunar mission in 2024, Chang'e 6.
00:16:22During this mission, they want to collect the first samples from the far side of the moon.
00:16:28As you can see, finding this lunar crystal was very important for us.
00:16:32These crystals can help us find new ways to create helium-3.
00:16:36And if we manage to do that, humankind will enter a new era.
00:16:41But to do this, we still have to solve a number of problems.
00:16:45How to deliver a bunch of these lunar crystals to Earth.
00:16:49How to make them produce energy.
00:16:51And so on.
00:16:52Let's hope that in the future these issues will be resolved
00:16:55and we'll find a way to produce clean, safe, unlimited energy.
00:16:59An asteroid broke off the moon and now it's super close to Earth.
00:17:06Does it pose a danger to us?
00:17:08Kama-Owa-Lewa, also known as 2016 H-O-3, spins super quickly as it orbits near our planet.
00:17:16Let's call it H-O-3 for short.
00:17:20Astronomers found it on April 27, 2016.
00:17:23Compared to other asteroids, it's tiny.
00:17:26On Earth, though, it would be the size of a small building or about half the size of the London Eye Ferris Wheel.
00:17:33They discovered it in Hawaii and its name roughly translates to a fragment of something that seems to wobble.
00:17:39After some study, they realized that this asteroid might be a chunk of the moon that got blasted into space.
00:17:45There's a part of the moon called Giordano-Bruno Crater, named after an Italian philosopher.
00:17:52That guy who had to pay quite the price for his ideas.
00:17:56If you look at it from space, Giordano-Bruno stands out because it's surrounded by some rays of material.
00:18:03They're super huge, stretching over 93 miles and are still bright.
00:18:06This means that an enormous boom once happened there.
00:18:10There's an interesting story about this.
00:18:13In 1178, five monks were traveling in Canterbury, England.
00:18:17Suddenly, they saw something strange happening on the moon.
00:18:20They said it looked like the moon was splitting with flames and sparks.
00:18:24Then there was a darkening that spread all across the lunar surface.
00:18:27In the 20th century, scientists found these records and thought that these monks saw the formation of the Giordano-Bruno Crater.
00:18:36But later, it turned out that the crater is about 4 million years old.
00:18:40And thank the stars, because such a massive impact, if it really happened in the 12th century, would have gone crazy on our planet.
00:18:48It would have caused a huge meteor storm on Earth.
00:18:51In any case, our HO3 is most likely a piece of the moon that broke off during that impact 4 million years ago.
00:18:58Luckily, there's no need to panic about it.
00:19:00When astronomers spotted this sudden moon piece, they quickly tracked its orbit.
00:19:05Turns out, it won't collide with us anytime soon.
00:19:08It's going to be our quasi-satellite for at least 300 more years.
00:19:12Meaning, it'll follow a path around the sun that keeps it close to Earth without colliding.
00:19:17Its orbit is wild, though.
00:19:20It seems to be constantly looping around our planet in some pretty unique loops.
00:19:24Moving closer and going away, up and down.
00:19:28And then somewhere in the 24th century, it will go even more crazy.
00:19:32Switching to a horseshoe orbit.
00:19:34Slowly going away from us.
00:19:36Could HO3 collide with us someday?
00:19:39Maybe.
00:19:40But that would happen over millions of years.
00:19:43When it would leave its current orbit and collide with Earth, Venus, or even the sun itself.
00:19:48Or maybe entirely ejected from the solar system.
00:19:52Even though it's one of the closest asteroids ever discovered, it's also one of the smallest and most stable ones.
00:19:58This discovery also opens up some exciting ideas about life in the universe.
00:20:03We see that rocks can travel between celestial bodies.
00:20:06There's a theory that life could have been spread all across the universe by traveling on these rocks like on some space Ubers.
00:20:15Or at least the building blocks of life like carbon.
00:20:18Maybe life even hitchhiked to our planet on rocks from Mars.
00:20:22HO3 probably doesn't carry any life, but the fact that it can travel for millions of years carrying stuff on it and feeling fine supports this theory.
00:20:31Astronomers want to send something to investigate HO3.
00:20:37Back in 2017, a group of students gave an idea of using a spacecraft for it.
00:20:42The China National Space Administration wants to send a robotic probe to HO3 somewhere in 2025.
00:20:50The robot should fly there, collect samples, and bring them back to Earth for study.
00:20:55Unfortunately, you can't see this asteroid in the sky with the naked eye.
00:20:59Its size is about 130 to 330 feet in diameter, so it would be too tiny and dim to see without a super powerful telescope.
00:21:10But there is an asteroid that you'll be able to see, and it will be insane.
00:21:16In 2029, a large asteroid will pass so close to Earth that it will be visible to the naked eye.
00:21:22Make sure not to miss it, because this is a once-in-a-thousand-year event.
00:21:26The asteroid is known as 2004 MN4, or Apophis for short.
00:21:33It's much bigger than HO3, about 1,210 feet wide.
00:21:38This will be the closest asteroid passage ever.
00:21:41This one actually caused some panic back in December 2004, all because there was a 2.7% chance that it could hit Earth in 2029.
00:21:53People were horrified.
00:21:54Even the name, Apophis, is inspired by an evil serpent from ancient Egyptian mythology.
00:22:00A huge monster that fought raw and always tried to swallow the sun and destroy the planet.
00:22:05Luckily, when scientists got more data, they realized that it would pass pretty close to us in 2029, and we'd be able to see it in the sky.
00:22:15But then, it will just fly away like a chill asteroid.
00:22:18There was another worry, though.
00:22:22That during its close pass, Apophis might travel through something called a gravitational keyhole.
00:22:29Basically, that it could travel through a specific narrow region of space which would accidentally alter its orbit.
00:22:36And then, it would make an epic comeback in 2036, like the planet from the movie Melancholia.
00:22:42However, after some calculations, scientists ruled out this possibility as well.
00:22:48Apophis will still come quite close to us in 2036, but it will be about as far away as Venus is when it overtakes Earth.
00:22:55And then, Apophis and Earth will just go their own separate ways.
00:23:00On average, an asteroid the size of Apophis is only expected to hit Earth once every 80,000 years.
00:23:07And if it did hit us, it would completely destroy a huge area, causing earthquakes and tsunamis all around the world.
00:23:14But it wouldn't cause an apocalypse or anything like that.
00:23:18You'd only be able to see Apophis from Europe, Africa, and Western Asia.
00:23:23So, if you want to see it, you might need to travel.
00:23:26The asteroid will look like a fast-moving star in the night sky, shining bright enough to be seen without any special equipment.
00:23:32It would be easy to spot at night, though city lights might make it harder to see.
00:23:39Now, can you imagine that these are not the only guys hanging nearby?
00:23:44Both HO3 and Apophis are part of the so-called Apollo Orbit asteroids.
00:23:50These are the asteroids with orbits going around Earth, an entire group of dangerous fellas.
00:23:56Since they cross Earth's orbit, they have the potential to come close to or even collide with our planet.
00:24:01The first asteroid of this group to be discovered was 1862 Apollo, named after the Greek deity of the Sun.
00:24:10It was first discovered in 1932, and the group was named after it.
00:24:15This one was even bigger, almost a mile in size.
00:24:19In fact, it's so huge that it even has its own tiny moon.
00:24:24Apollo crosses orbits of not just Earth, but also Venus and Mars.
00:24:28Fun fact, even though it was the first one of its kind, telescopes accidentally lost it out of view for over 40 years.
00:24:38So scientists went, oh well, let's just keep the count of things we can see.
00:24:43When Apollo was rediscovered, in 1973, it wasn't the first asteroid on the list and got a big number in its name.
00:24:51Apollo will fly near us during the next hundreds of years.
00:24:55In 2075, it will be somewhere around Venus, but it should fly by as well.
00:25:01In any case, there's no need to worry, because astronomers are keeping a close track on these guys.
00:25:06If we were in any immediate danger, we'd have known.
00:25:09In order for an asteroid to totally destroy life on our planet, it should be bigger than 6 miles in diameter.
00:25:17Like the one that helped to wipe out the dinosaurs 66 million years ago.
00:25:21But these guys are so crazy rare, we'd probably live on other planets by the time they arrive on Earth.
00:25:28Ruh-roh, there might be another universe, like a dark mirror image of ours, where time flows in reverse.
00:25:40This flipped-over world might also be the source of dark matter, the invisible substance that's all over our universe.
00:25:48There might also be many more universes out there, in which an exact copy of you woke up this morning,
00:25:55but it chose a white t-shirt instead of a red one.
00:25:58Sending it on a completely different life path.
00:26:02But let's start with this elusive dark matter.
00:26:05It makes up most of the universe's mass, yet we're not sure what exactly it does or where it comes from.
00:26:12That's because it doesn't act like regular matter.
00:26:15We can't see it or feel it.
00:26:17We just know it's there because of how it seems to bend gravity.
00:26:22Even though regular matter and dark matter are very different, they seem to exist in a balance.
00:26:28Some scientists think this must be connected somehow.
00:26:32A new theory suggests that, for every way regular matter moves, there's a mirror version of it in the world of dark matter,
00:26:39like a bridge connecting the two worlds.
00:26:42There's also a strange coincidence in regular matter where a neutron and a proton have almost the same weight.
00:26:50This allows them to stick together and make atoms stable, making everything that we can see with our eyes exist.
00:26:57If protons were a bit heavier, there would be no balance and atoms wouldn't form.
00:27:03In the dark mirror universe, maybe things happen differently.
00:27:07Maybe in there, the equivalent of a proton doesn't bind to other particles,
00:27:12leaving behind lonely neutrons, which could be the source of dark matter.
00:27:17This theory also suggests that dark matter might have its own chemistry,
00:27:22like dark atoms in a dark periodic table.
00:27:25For the longest time, scientists believed there was just one type of dark matter.
00:27:30Although these particles are similar in some ways, like being almost invisible,
00:27:35they may vary in their sizes, speeds, and how they affect regular matter.
00:27:40If this idea is right, it means there could have been interactions between our universe
00:27:46and the dark mirror universe in the past.
00:27:49Studying how elements formed in the early universe might give us clues about this.
00:27:55The idea of a flipped world has sparked curiosity
00:27:59and even some confusion in the scientific community in recent years.
00:28:04Astronomers use a theory called the Lambda-CDM model
00:28:08to explain the composition and behavior of our universe.
00:28:12According to it, most of the universe is made of two things,
00:28:16dark energy and dark matter.
00:28:18Dark energy is like the pushing force that makes the universe expand faster.
00:28:23Dark matter is this invisible thread that pulls things together with its gravity,
00:28:29acting like a universal glue.
00:28:32Regular objects like stars, planets, and comets
00:28:35only make up a small part of the mix.
00:28:38The model also tells us about the Big Bang
00:28:40and how everything started from a hot, crowded beginning
00:28:44and how the universe has been growing and changing ever since.
00:28:48While this model seems to be correct in many ways,
00:28:51it doesn't explain all cosmic phenomena.
00:28:55If you were to draw this model on a piece of paper,
00:28:58it would look like a series of flat pancakes stacked on top of one another.
00:29:03Each one of the pancakes represents a rendition of the universe
00:29:07at a certain point in time.
00:29:10Yesterday's universe would stand below that of today,
00:29:13but it would be a slightly smaller pancake.
00:29:16By the end, you'll see that the universe's history
00:29:19looks like this giant upside-down cone,
00:29:22with its minuscule tip being the Big Bang.
00:29:25Beyond this point, we can't see any further away in time
00:29:29with the tools we have, so we don't know what's beyond.
00:29:33More so, we're still not even sure what happened
00:29:36immediately after the Big Bang.
00:29:39But if we simply apply the math,
00:29:42the universe might go beyond this historical tipping point,
00:29:46which could mean it could go in reverse,
00:29:49creating a similar mirrored cone
00:29:51where time would flow backwards,
00:29:54in our perspective at least.
00:29:55This alternative idea not only challenges
00:29:59our understanding of cosmic origins,
00:30:01but also raises questions about
00:30:03fundamental principles in physics.
00:30:06All the excitement around a mirrored universe
00:30:09also came from ANITA,
00:30:11a scientific instrument stationed in Antarctica
00:30:14and its discoveries.
00:30:16This device saw some weird high-energy particles
00:30:19seemingly bursting from beneath the Antarctic eyes.
00:30:23The problem with these particles
00:30:25is that they didn't behave
00:30:26as the laws of physics dictate.
00:30:29Scientists think they have a type of cosmic rays.
00:30:32They travel from space through the Earth
00:30:35and back out again.
00:30:37But the particles we already know about
00:30:39shouldn't behave like that.
00:30:41That's because higher-energy particles
00:30:43usually collide with something inside the Earth
00:30:46and don't come out the other side like these do.
00:30:49They seem to be doing things
00:30:51both forward and backward.
00:30:54For now, there's no concrete proof
00:30:56of a mirrored universe.
00:30:58These particles could simply be ones
00:31:00we haven't discovered before.
00:31:02And scientists need to study them closely
00:31:04to come up with a definitive answer
00:31:06as to why they're behaving like this.
00:31:09Kind of like four-year-olds.
00:31:11But what if there isn't just one other universe,
00:31:15but many more?
00:31:16This multiverse concept comes from ideas
00:31:19like the inflation theory,
00:31:22which says that our world had this rapid expansion
00:31:25in its early stages.
00:31:26While inflation stopped in our neighborhood
00:31:29billions of years ago,
00:31:31it's likely that it continues
00:31:33in other regions of the multiverse,
00:31:35creating different universes
00:31:36with their own laws of physics
00:31:38and unique characteristics.
00:31:40Our universe is the only one
00:31:42that we know of that can support life.
00:31:44We have stable stars
00:31:46that can provide heat and warmth,
00:31:48for example,
00:31:49which is crucial for creatures
00:31:51to start moving around.
00:31:53We also have an abundance of elements
00:31:56like carbon and hydrogen,
00:31:58which we also need to exist.
00:32:00The multiverse hypothesis
00:32:01gives an explanation
00:32:03for why our universe exhibits
00:32:05such life-friendly conditions.
00:32:07It may explain that there are
00:32:09countless other universes out there
00:32:11with varying conditions,
00:32:13making the existence of life
00:32:15in at least one of them
00:32:16less likely.
00:32:18One fascinating implication
00:32:20of the multiverse theory
00:32:22is the idea of doppelgangers,
00:32:25these exact copies of individuals
00:32:27existing in parallel universes.
00:32:29This notion suggests that
00:32:31within the vast expanse
00:32:33of the multiverse,
00:32:34there could be infinite scenarios
00:32:36where identical versions of ourselves
00:32:38are experiencing similar events
00:32:41at the same time.
00:32:43Before we begin our travels
00:32:45to different universes altogether,
00:32:47we might need to understand our own.
00:32:50There's this galaxy, for instance,
00:32:52far from us,
00:32:53that might have no dark matter at all.
00:32:56It's about 250 million light-years away
00:32:59and looks normal at first glance.
00:33:01But if we look closer,
00:33:04we can't seem to find any dark matter.
00:33:07If it turns out that there are
00:33:08more galaxies like this one,
00:33:10it could change our ideas
00:33:12about how galaxies are made.
00:33:14Dark matter is usually thought
00:33:16to be necessary for this process,
00:33:18acting like the glue
00:33:19that holds the whole thing together.
00:33:22It is true, however,
00:33:23that this particular galaxy
00:33:25is more faint
00:33:26and has fewer stars than usual.
00:33:28When it was first discovered in 2019,
00:33:33scientists thought
00:33:34it might not have dark matter
00:33:36because of how fast it was spinning.
00:33:39The speed at which a galaxy spins
00:33:41tells us how much stuff there is in it.
00:33:44By comparing this speed
00:33:45with what we can see,
00:33:47astronomers can figure out
00:33:48how much extra stuff,
00:33:50like dark matter,
00:33:51must be there.
00:33:52And in this unique galaxy,
00:33:55the math says there isn't any.
00:33:58Among all these theories,
00:34:00there's also one that says
00:34:01dark matter might not be real at all.
00:34:04This new study proposes
00:34:06that maybe we've been looking
00:34:07for something that doesn't even exist.
00:34:11They think that our understanding
00:34:12of gravity might not be good enough
00:34:14to explain why
00:34:16some galaxies behave oddly.
00:34:18So instead of dark matter
00:34:20causing these weird behaviors,
00:34:22they say it might just be
00:34:24that we don't fully understand
00:34:26how regular matter works.
00:34:27They base these findings
00:34:29on a theory called
00:34:30modified Newtonian dynamics.
00:34:33It suggests that gravity
00:34:35behaves differently
00:34:36at very large distances
00:34:37or very low speeds.
00:34:41How about playing golf?
00:34:43Not on Earth,
00:34:44but on the Moon.
00:34:46Let's journey back to a time
00:34:4750 years ago
00:34:48when one astronaut
00:34:49turned the lunar surface
00:34:51into the most unusual
00:34:52golf course ever.
00:34:54Any golfer will tell you
00:34:58how tricky it is
00:34:59to avoid sand traps,
00:35:00but picture Alan Shepard,
00:35:02a NASA astronaut
00:35:03dealing with an entire surface
00:35:04that feels like super fine powder.
00:35:07During the Apollo 14 mission,
00:35:09he took a break
00:35:10to showcase some spacey golf skills
00:35:12for everyone watching from Earth.
00:35:14After his first shot,
00:35:16he excitedly made another.
00:35:17For him,
00:35:18it seemed the ball went forever
00:35:20and ever.
00:35:22Let's dial back to reality
00:35:24for a moment.
00:35:25Thanks to the research
00:35:26by the United States Golf Association
00:35:28or USGA,
00:35:30we've got some numbers.
00:35:31They found that Alan's first moon ball
00:35:34traveled 24 yards
00:35:35and his second
00:35:36stretched for 40 yards.
00:35:39Now,
00:35:39how does that compare
00:35:40to the average golf shots
00:35:42back here?
00:35:43In regular gravity,
00:35:44one usually swings
00:35:45to about 216 yards.
00:35:48Just goes to show,
00:35:49while we've upgraded
00:35:50our golf game on Earth
00:35:51with tech and training,
00:35:52the moon's low-gravity playground
00:35:54is a different environment
00:35:55altogether.
00:36:00Now,
00:36:00let's give Alan some props.
00:36:02Moon golf?
00:36:03Not as simple as you might think.
00:36:05His club wasn't one
00:36:06from your local sports store.
00:36:07It was a makeshift one.
00:36:09A moon sample collector
00:36:10with a club head stuck to it.
00:36:13Add to that
00:36:13the bulky spacesuit he had on.
00:36:16Imagine,
00:36:16trying to swing
00:36:17wearing an outfit
00:36:18that's as stiff as cardboard.
00:36:20With all that gear,
00:36:22Alan could only muster
00:36:23a one-handed swing.
00:36:24Care to have
00:36:25a similar experience?
00:36:27Well,
00:36:27you might not be able
00:36:28to play golf on the moon
00:36:29anytime soon,
00:36:31but you can give it
00:36:32a shot underwater.
00:36:33Some say
00:36:34the conditions are similar.
00:36:37Here's where it gets
00:36:38even more interesting.
00:36:40The USGA
00:36:40didn't just take Alan's word
00:36:42on where the balls landed.
00:36:44They wanted to investigate.
00:36:46For starters,
00:36:47they used ultra-clear footage
00:36:48of the Apollo 14 mission.
00:36:51They also used
00:36:51some sharp images
00:36:52from NASA's
00:36:53special moon camera
00:36:54launched in 2009.
00:36:57Using this imagery,
00:36:59they mapped out
00:36:59the journey
00:37:00of those two golf balls.
00:37:05Alan loved
00:37:06his unique golf club
00:37:07so much,
00:37:08he wanted to bring it
00:37:09back home.
00:37:10No big deal, right?
00:37:11Well, you see,
00:37:12in those days,
00:37:13astronauts would leave
00:37:14behind unnecessary items
00:37:15to make space
00:37:16for moon rocks.
00:37:17But not this club!
00:37:19So during the 70s,
00:37:21this interstellar
00:37:22golf club
00:37:22found a new home
00:37:23at the USGA Museum
00:37:24in New Jersey.
00:37:26Unlike regular golf clubs,
00:37:27this one had a twist.
00:37:29It was crafted
00:37:30from aluminum
00:37:30and Teflon.
00:37:32It was built
00:37:32to fold
00:37:33and fit snugly
00:37:34within the tight spaces
00:37:35of the lunar lander.
00:37:36How did this whole
00:37:38moon golf idea
00:37:39even pop up?
00:37:41Well, in 1970,
00:37:42golf legend
00:37:43Bob Hope
00:37:44paid a visit to NASA.
00:37:45Inspired by Hope's
00:37:46love for golf,
00:37:47an idea came
00:37:48into Shepard's head,
00:37:50moon golf.
00:37:51To turn his dream
00:37:52into reality,
00:37:53he collaborated
00:37:54with a golf professional
00:37:55and NASA's tech specialists.
00:37:57Together,
00:37:58they crafted a club
00:37:59that met
00:37:59NASA's strict safety norms.
00:38:01But hey,
00:38:06Alan didn't want this
00:38:07to be just
00:38:07a surprise stunt.
00:38:09Remember,
00:38:09traveling to the moon
00:38:10required very strict protocols.
00:38:12They couldn't just
00:38:13randomly have a picnic
00:38:14up there, you know?
00:38:15So,
00:38:16Alan made sure
00:38:17NASA officials
00:38:18agreed with this
00:38:19impromptu game of golf.
00:38:20They were initially skeptical,
00:38:22but eventually
00:38:23gave the green light
00:38:24after Alan
00:38:25passionately laid out
00:38:26his plan.
00:38:27He also promised
00:38:28he'd start playing
00:38:29if everything went
00:38:30smoothly on the mission.
00:38:31Determined to make it perfect,
00:38:34Alan prepped like a champ.
00:38:35The story goes
00:38:36that he'd put on
00:38:37his hefty spacesuit
00:38:38and sneak off
00:38:39to secret spots
00:38:40so he could practice.
00:38:42Decades later,
00:38:43he'd still be reflecting
00:38:44on his lunar escapade.
00:38:45He was the only golfer
00:38:47to ever swing on the moon.
00:38:49It's not just golf balls
00:38:50that astronauts
00:38:51left behind on their trips.
00:38:53There were actually
00:38:54a lot of objects
00:38:55left on the moon
00:38:56between 1969
00:38:57and 1972,
00:38:59the year of the last
00:39:01moon landing.
00:39:04Each time you gaze up
00:39:06at the moon,
00:39:07remember that there's
00:39:07a cute family photo
00:39:09up there,
00:39:09some huge science gadgets,
00:39:11a small statue,
00:39:12a bunch of,
00:39:13well,
00:39:14human waste bags,
00:39:15and yes,
00:39:16some American flags.
00:39:18Years have passed by,
00:39:19and yes,
00:39:20technically those items
00:39:21are still hanging out there,
00:39:23though they've probably
00:39:24seen better days
00:39:25because of the harsh
00:39:26conditions on the moon.
00:39:27Some items
00:39:28had a special place
00:39:29in the astronauts' hearts
00:39:31and were meant
00:39:31to stay on the moon.
00:39:33But hey,
00:39:33leaving some stuff behind
00:39:34also meant
00:39:35they could bring back
00:39:36moon samples.
00:39:38You know the feeling.
00:39:39It's like when you need
00:39:39to make room in your suitcase
00:39:40for souvenirs
00:39:41when you're finishing
00:39:42a vacation.
00:39:44Does NASA have
00:39:45a complete list of things
00:39:46they left on the moon?
00:39:47Well,
00:39:48not really.
00:39:49In fact,
00:39:49one team tried
00:39:50to create a record
00:39:51of some of the items
00:39:52and reached an amazing list
00:39:54of 106 left there
00:39:56from the Apollo 11 mission alone.
00:39:59And that's not counting
00:40:00Neil Armstrong
00:40:00and Buzz Aldrin's
00:40:02famous footprints.
00:40:06The largest items
00:40:07at each landing site
00:40:08were mostly
00:40:09the science-y stuff,
00:40:10like pieces of their lunar module
00:40:12and experiments
00:40:13to study the moon in depth.
00:40:15Then there were
00:40:16some beautiful tokens,
00:40:17like Apollo 11's plaque
00:40:18and a special disk
00:40:20with messages from leaders
00:40:21around the world.
00:40:22Some say
00:40:23the astronauts
00:40:24also took medals
00:40:25to remember
00:40:25some heroic cosmonauts
00:40:27and they even left
00:40:28a gold olive branch,
00:40:30an age-old symbol of peace.
00:40:33Now,
00:40:34later moon missions
00:40:34had a little more fun,
00:40:36like Alan Shepard did
00:40:37with his golf game.
00:40:38But the award
00:40:39for the most heartwarming moment
00:40:40goes to Charlie Duke.
00:40:42During the Apollo 16 mission,
00:40:44he left a picture
00:40:45of his family up there.
00:40:47It's like he wanted them
00:40:47to be a part of the adventure.
00:40:49Although,
00:40:50a heads up,
00:40:51those photos
00:40:51probably didn't age well
00:40:53because of the moon's
00:40:53high exposure
00:40:54to the sun's radiation.
00:40:56There might just be
00:40:58an art museum up there
00:40:59on our satellite, too.
00:41:01Let me explain.
00:41:02There is this tiny little art piece
00:41:04called the Moon Museum.
00:41:06It's a ceramic chip
00:41:07about the size of your nail
00:41:08and it was crafted
00:41:09by an artist named
00:41:10Boris Meyers.
00:41:15This tiny object
00:41:16showcases miniature artworks
00:41:18from six talented people.
00:41:19Among them are even
00:41:21the famous Andy Warhol,
00:41:23the same artist known
00:41:24for his iconic soup cans
00:41:25and celebrity portraits.
00:41:28Forrest Meyers said
00:41:28he wanted his mini museum
00:41:30to be on the moon,
00:41:31but there was a problem.
00:41:33NASA officials
00:41:33weren't exactly on board
00:41:35with the idea.
00:41:37However,
00:41:38Meyers shared with the press
00:41:39that he handed over
00:41:40this art chip
00:41:41to an engineer
00:41:42working on the Apollo 12 mission.
00:41:44According to Meyers,
00:41:45this engineer secretly
00:41:47tucked the Moon Museum
00:41:48onto a leg
00:41:49of the lunar lander.
00:41:50In case you haven't
00:41:51figured it out yet,
00:41:52these lunar landers
00:41:53don't come back to Earth
00:41:55after their mission.
00:41:56Take this with a grain of salt,
00:41:57though,
00:41:57as NASA has never
00:41:59confirmed this story.
00:42:00You might wonder,
00:42:02why did they leave
00:42:02all these things?
00:42:04Sometimes,
00:42:04it was about making a statement.
00:42:06Other times,
00:42:07it was purely practical.
00:42:09At one point,
00:42:10it was mentioned
00:42:11that during the Apollo 11 mission,
00:42:13for example,
00:42:14a decision needed to be made.
00:42:16The astronauts
00:42:16had to quickly figure out
00:42:18what was essential
00:42:19for their trip back home.
00:42:21They ended up creating
00:42:22a cleanup spot,
00:42:23tossing away things
00:42:24they didn't need anymore.
00:42:29Leaving things behind
00:42:30on the moon
00:42:31isn't that different
00:42:32from how we leave
00:42:32things behind on Earth,
00:42:34just like archaeologists
00:42:35study our ancient leftovers
00:42:36to learn about our ancestors.
00:42:39The stuff on the moon
00:42:40gives us insights
00:42:41about those incredible
00:42:42lunar missions.
00:42:44Some things they left
00:42:45had done their job,
00:42:46like the pole for the flag
00:42:47or the camera
00:42:48they used to broadcast
00:42:49those steps on the moon.
00:42:50Even the tools
00:42:51astronauts used
00:42:52to collect samples
00:42:53were left
00:42:54because they had
00:42:54more precious cargo
00:42:55to bring back.
00:42:57Moon rocks
00:42:57When it comes
00:42:59to the current state
00:43:00of all these items,
00:43:01scientists are not
00:43:02entirely sure.
00:43:04We do know
00:43:04that NASA's moon observer
00:43:06has spotted
00:43:06some of their shadows.
00:43:08They're still up there.
00:43:09The official gear
00:43:10was built to resist,
00:43:11so it might behave
00:43:12a bit better.
00:43:13But those personal items,
00:43:15they've probably
00:43:16seen better days.
00:43:20Soon we might start
00:43:21constructing loads
00:43:22of stuff on the moon.
00:43:25All because
00:43:26India's moon mission
00:43:27has recently detected
00:43:28sulfur near the moon's
00:43:30south pole.
00:43:32This chemical element
00:43:34can come in extremely handy
00:43:36for creating infrastructure
00:43:37on our satellite.
00:43:39It's the first time
00:43:40this chemical element
00:43:41has been discovered
00:43:42on Earth's natural satellite.
00:43:45This sought-after element
00:43:46is mostly found
00:43:47near Earth's volcanoes.
00:43:50Its appearance
00:43:51on the moon
00:43:51speaks volumes
00:43:52about the satellite's
00:43:53volcanic history
00:43:54and its past
00:43:55atmospheric conditions.
00:43:58The mission's rover
00:44:00detected this chemical element
00:44:01less than a week
00:44:02after touching down
00:44:03around 70 degrees
00:44:05from the moon's
00:44:06south pole
00:44:06on the 23rd of August,
00:44:082023.
00:44:10This historic landing
00:44:12on the lunar surface
00:44:13made India
00:44:13the fourth country
00:44:15to safely land
00:44:16a mission on the moon.
00:44:18It's also
00:44:19the first spacecraft
00:44:20to touch down
00:44:21so close to the south pole
00:44:23of our satellite.
00:44:24It's an area
00:44:25of strategic importance
00:44:26because it's believed
00:44:27to be home
00:44:28to deposits
00:44:29of water ice.
00:44:31If it turns out
00:44:32to be true,
00:44:33future missions
00:44:34might be able
00:44:34to harvest it
00:44:35and turn this water ice
00:44:37into drinking water
00:44:38or even rocket fuel.
00:44:41For two weeks,
00:44:42the lander carried out
00:44:43the data collection
00:44:44mainly focused
00:44:45on the analysis
00:44:46of the moon's soil
00:44:47and its extremely
00:44:49thin atmosphere.
00:44:51Meanwhile,
00:44:52the solar-powered
00:44:52Pragyan rover
00:44:53started its quest
00:44:54to find frozen water
00:44:56on the moon.
00:44:57As for the lander,
00:44:59it demonstrated
00:44:59another amazing feat
00:45:01on the 3rd of September.
00:45:03The spacecraft
00:45:03fired up its engines
00:45:05and lifted itself
00:45:06for about 16 inches
00:45:08into the air.
00:45:09Then it made a tiny hop
00:45:10to land 12 to 16 inches
00:45:12away from its original position.
00:45:15It's kinda a big deal.
00:45:18Being able to get a lander
00:45:19back off the surface
00:45:20of the moon
00:45:20is essentially
00:45:21for future missions,
00:45:23showing that they can
00:45:24safely return soil samples
00:45:25or even astronauts
00:45:26back home
00:45:27after a lunar mission.
00:45:31In September,
00:45:32the Indian spacecraft
00:45:33was put into sleeping mode.
00:45:35The 14-day-long lunar night
00:45:38was approaching,
00:45:39and the spacecraft
00:45:40wasn't designed
00:45:40to collect scientific data
00:45:42during this period of time.
00:45:44So far,
00:45:45we've learned about
00:45:46a few major findings
00:45:47of the mission.
00:45:49One is related
00:45:50to measuring the temperature
00:45:51of the moon's topsoil
00:45:52at different depths.
00:45:54Intriguingly,
00:45:55the surface of the satellite
00:45:57in that region
00:45:57turned out to be
00:45:58hotter than expected.
00:45:59It was believed
00:46:01that the temperature
00:46:02could be between
00:46:0368 and 86 degrees Fahrenheit
00:46:06on the surface,
00:46:07but it was around
00:46:08158 degrees Fahrenheit,
00:46:11way hotter than it should be.
00:46:13The other discovery
00:46:15indicates the presence
00:46:16of several chemical elements,
00:46:18including oxygen.
00:46:20Besides,
00:46:21the data received
00:46:22from the spacecraft
00:46:22confirms the presence
00:46:24of aluminum,
00:46:25calcium,
00:46:26iron,
00:46:27titanium,
00:46:28silicon,
00:46:29and other chemical elements
00:46:31on the lunar surface
00:46:32close to the south pole.
00:46:34The rover also used
00:46:36special instruments
00:46:37designed to measure quakes
00:46:39and rumbles
00:46:39beneath the lunar surface
00:46:41to detect some seismic activity.
00:46:43It brings us back
00:46:45to the sulfur detected
00:46:46thanks to the rover's
00:46:48spectroscope.
00:46:50Scientists are currently
00:46:51working on figuring out
00:46:52whether this element
00:46:53formed on the surface
00:46:55in a natural way
00:46:56or whether it's the result
00:46:57of volcanic activity
00:46:59or a meteor strike.
00:47:02Another astonishing thing
00:47:04found on the moon
00:47:05is a rock,
00:47:06and it may be
00:47:06the oldest known
00:47:07Earth rock.
00:47:09A 0.7-inch wide chip
00:47:11included in a large
00:47:12rock collection
00:47:13brought to our planet
00:47:14by Apollo astronauts
00:47:16might actually be
00:47:17a 4 billion-year-old
00:47:19fragment of Earth.
00:47:20This finding
00:47:23could help us
00:47:24paint a better picture
00:47:25of the intense
00:47:26pounding early Earth
00:47:27got at the dawn
00:47:29of its life.
00:47:30It could go like this.
00:47:33Soon after the rock
00:47:33formed,
00:47:34an asteroid impact
00:47:35might have blasted it
00:47:36from Earth.
00:47:37At that time,
00:47:39our planet's satellite
00:47:40was three times
00:47:41closer to Earth
00:47:42than it is today.
00:47:43The collision
00:47:44was so powerful
00:47:45that this chunk
00:47:46of terrestrial rock
00:47:47found its way
00:47:48to the moon.
00:47:48Later,
00:47:50this fragment
00:47:50got engulfed
00:47:51in a lunar breccia,
00:47:53a motley kind of rock.
00:47:55Eventually,
00:47:56the rock was brought
00:47:57back home to Earth
00:47:58by Apollo 14 astronauts.
00:48:01Even though scientists
00:48:02had found meteorites
00:48:03coming from Mars
00:48:04and the moon before,
00:48:05it was the first time
00:48:06a rock from the moon
00:48:07turned out to be
00:48:08a terrestrial meteorite.
00:48:10They also found out
00:48:12that the rock
00:48:12had formed
00:48:13in a water-rich environment
00:48:14at temperatures
00:48:15and pressures
00:48:16corresponding to those
00:48:18at around 12 miles
00:48:19beneath the surface
00:48:20of our planet.
00:48:23In 2019,
00:48:25China's Chang'e 4 mission
00:48:26made history
00:48:27by landing
00:48:28on the far side
00:48:29of the moon.
00:48:30The mission's rover
00:48:31helped researchers
00:48:32visualize structures
00:48:34hidden deep below
00:48:35the surface
00:48:36of the satellite,
00:48:37revealing billions
00:48:38of years
00:48:39of lunar history.
00:48:40The Yutu-2 rover
00:48:42made this discovery
00:48:43with the help
00:48:44of its lunar-penetrating radar.
00:48:46It imaged deep
00:48:47into the moon's surface
00:48:48and listened to echoes
00:48:50of sound bouncing
00:48:51back off structures
00:48:52hidden from view
00:48:54under the surface
00:48:55of the moon.
00:48:57It turned out
00:48:58those structures
00:48:59were resting
00:48:59at depths
00:49:00of almost 1,000 feet.
00:49:03The research suggests
00:49:04that the first
00:49:04130 feet
00:49:05under the surface
00:49:06are made up
00:49:07of layers of dust,
00:49:08soil,
00:49:09and rocks.
00:49:10The instruments
00:49:11also discovered
00:49:11a concealed crater
00:49:13that must have formed
00:49:14after a large object
00:49:15slammed into
00:49:16the moon's surface.
00:49:18Long, long ago,
00:49:20ancient lava
00:49:20was likely to be
00:49:21flowing deep underground.
00:49:25Researchers believe
00:49:26that the broken rocks
00:49:27around the formation
00:49:28might be debris
00:49:29produced by the impact.
00:49:31They also found
00:49:32that the volcanic rock layers
00:49:33were thinner
00:49:34the closer they were
00:49:35to the surface.
00:49:36Such a thickness
00:49:38variation of lava flows
00:49:39might mean
00:49:40a decrease
00:49:41in the number
00:49:42and magnitude
00:49:43of eruptions
00:49:44over time.
00:49:46So,
00:49:46lunar volcanic activity
00:49:48gradually dwindled
00:49:49since the moon's
00:49:50formation
00:49:50around 4.5 billion
00:49:52years ago.
00:49:54On the far side
00:49:56of the moon,
00:49:57there is one
00:49:57of the largest
00:49:58and oldest
00:49:59impact craters
00:50:00in our solar system,
00:50:01the South Pole-Aitken Basin.
00:50:04Unfortunately,
00:50:05from Earth,
00:50:05you can only see
00:50:06its outer rim,
00:50:07which looks like
00:50:08a huge chain
00:50:09of mountains.
00:50:09It's a ginormous
00:50:128-mile-deep dent,
00:50:14stretching for more
00:50:15than 1,500 miles
00:50:17in diameter
00:50:17and covering
00:50:18one-fourth
00:50:19of the moon's surface.
00:50:21Astronomers are sure
00:50:23that this crater
00:50:23appeared when an asteroid
00:50:25collided with the moon
00:50:26around 4 billion years ago.
00:50:29And now,
00:50:30look at this gigantic
00:50:32chunk of metal
00:50:32the size of
00:50:33four states
00:50:34of Connecticut.
00:50:35As for its weight
00:50:36in pounds,
00:50:37it's enough to say
00:50:37that the number
00:50:38contains 18 zeros.
00:50:41This mysterious mass
00:50:42is hidden
00:50:43about 180 miles
00:50:45under the moon's surface,
00:50:47somewhere in the middle
00:50:48of the South Pole-Aitken Basin.
00:50:51It was discovered
00:50:52when GRAIL,
00:50:53which stands for
00:50:54NASA's Gravity Recovery
00:50:56and Interior Laboratory Mission,
00:50:58gathered data
00:50:59about our natural satellite.
00:51:01When examining
00:51:02this information,
00:51:03scientists noticed
00:51:04that in one place
00:51:05on the moon's surface,
00:51:06there was a weird change
00:51:07in gravity.
00:51:09After researching
00:51:10this phenomenon,
00:51:11they included
00:51:12that something mysterious
00:51:13was weighing down
00:51:14the basin floor there.
00:51:17So far,
00:51:18researchers haven't figured out
00:51:19the origin
00:51:20of the bizarre lump,
00:51:21but there are
00:51:22several theories.
00:51:24One of them claims
00:51:25that the finding
00:51:25is a chunk
00:51:26of dense oxide,
00:51:28which appeared
00:51:28when the moon
00:51:29was just taking its shape.
00:51:31At that time,
00:51:32the satellite
00:51:32was still covered
00:51:33with ancient oceans
00:51:34of magma,
00:51:35and the lump
00:51:36could be formed
00:51:36at the final stages
00:51:38of its cooling.
00:51:39However,
00:51:40most scientists
00:51:40support another theory,
00:51:42according to which,
00:51:43the puzzling mass
00:51:44is part of the giant asteroid
00:51:46that once created
00:51:47the South Pole-Aitken Basin.
00:51:50Since the thing
00:51:50is metallic,
00:51:51it's probably
00:51:52the iron-nickel core
00:51:54of the asteroid.
00:51:56There might be
00:51:57a labyrinth
00:51:58of lava tubes
00:51:59on the moon.
00:52:00Not so long ago,
00:52:01astronomers received
00:52:02the results
00:52:03of underground topography
00:52:04and discovered
00:52:05a massive cave
00:52:06under the surface
00:52:07of Earth's satellite.
00:52:09It could be
00:52:10the result
00:52:11of the lunar volcanic activity
00:52:12that happened
00:52:13more than
00:52:14three billion years ago.
00:52:16Streams of lava
00:52:17hardened,
00:52:18creating a thick,
00:52:19hard crust
00:52:20on the outside.
00:52:22But inside,
00:52:23it kept flowing,
00:52:24melting the rock
00:52:25and creating tunnels
00:52:26and caves.
00:52:27numerous small pits
00:52:30in the moon's surface
00:52:31discovered by NASA
00:52:32seem to be the openings
00:52:34to such lava tubes.
00:52:36If this theory
00:52:36is confirmed,
00:52:38the underground tunnels
00:52:39might serve not only
00:52:40as a convenient location
00:52:41for human-crewed space missions,
00:52:43but also as much-needed
00:52:45water sources
00:52:46for astronauts.
00:52:47Our moon exploration project
00:52:51started out in 1969.
00:52:54Sure,
00:52:54there have been
00:52:55some problems
00:52:56along the way,
00:52:56but astronomers are certain
00:52:58we'll get back up there
00:52:59pretty soon
00:52:59and with better knowledge
00:53:00and technology.
00:53:02However,
00:53:02there's an 800-year-old trick
00:53:05that might become
00:53:05way more useful
00:53:06than fancy GPS tech
00:53:08and powerful rockets.
00:53:10It's called
00:53:10the Fibonacci sphere.
00:53:12Some scientists
00:53:14at a Hungarian university
00:53:16stumbled upon this idea
00:53:17while studying the moon.
00:53:19They believe
00:53:20it might be useful
00:53:21to better understand
00:53:22how the moon spins
00:53:23and how it's a bit squished
00:53:24while it goes around Earth.
00:53:26You might believe
00:53:27that our planet
00:53:28and its satellite
00:53:28are these perfect little spheres
00:53:30floating in space.
00:53:32Well,
00:53:33that's not true.
00:53:34They are in fact
00:53:35like slightly deflated
00:53:36soccer balls
00:53:37because of all the gravity,
00:53:39rotating movements,
00:53:40and tides.
00:53:41The GPS technology
00:53:42we use here on Earth
00:53:44is already adapted
00:53:45to these
00:53:45less-than-perfect
00:53:46ball proportions.
00:53:48Remember,
00:53:49our planet
00:53:49is a bit flattened
00:53:50at its poles.
00:53:52If we're going to make
00:53:52a map system for the moon,
00:53:54we need to do the same
00:53:55for its shape,
00:53:56called a solenoid,
00:53:58or what scientists
00:53:59call the moon's version
00:54:00of our Earth's shape.
00:54:01Since the moon
00:54:02is less compressed
00:54:03than our planet,
00:54:04scientists have been
00:54:05taking a shortcut
00:54:06until now.
00:54:07They've been looking
00:54:07at our satellite
00:54:08as a simple ball shape.
00:54:10However,
00:54:10with all these
00:54:12new projects
00:54:12coming up
00:54:13in the following decades
00:54:14and even some
00:54:15exciting trips
00:54:16we might end up
00:54:17having on the moon,
00:54:18we need to be
00:54:19more precise.
00:54:21Scientists now believe
00:54:22we should get
00:54:22the real data
00:54:23and start drawing
00:54:24an accurate picture
00:54:25of the moon.
00:54:26Here's where
00:54:27the Fibonacci sphere
00:54:28comes in handy.
00:54:29It's a clever solution
00:54:30that's been used
00:54:31by mathematicians
00:54:32to spread points
00:54:33out evenly
00:54:34on a ball.
00:54:35Scientists recently
00:54:36used it to map
00:54:37around 100,000 spots
00:54:39on the moon
00:54:39using data
00:54:40previously collected
00:54:41by NASA
00:54:42and what they found
00:54:43was crucial
00:54:44for our understanding
00:54:45of the moon's shape.
00:54:47For instance,
00:54:48we now know
00:54:49that our satellite's poles
00:54:50are about 0.3 miles
00:54:52closer to the center
00:54:53compared to the moon's equator.
00:54:56Sure,
00:54:57it might seem
00:54:58like a tiny detail,
00:54:59but if we adjust
00:55:00our GPS software
00:55:01accordingly
00:55:02before we land
00:55:03on the moon again,
00:55:04it might save us
00:55:05from getting lost up there.
00:55:06This level of math
00:55:07hasn't been done
00:55:08since the 60s
00:55:09for the moon,
00:55:10but we already know
00:55:12it works wonders
00:55:13here at home,
00:55:14so it only makes scientists
00:55:16better prepared
00:55:17for future missions.
00:55:18This isn't the first time
00:55:20people have used
00:55:20Fibonacci's findings
00:55:21to come up
00:55:22with clever solutions.
00:55:23We've also seen it
00:55:24put to work in finance,
00:55:26agriculture,
00:55:27and in computer science.
00:55:28Let's see where
00:55:29it all came from.
00:55:30Legend has it
00:55:31that the Italian mathematician
00:55:32Fibonacci
00:55:33wasn't really that interested
00:55:34in mathematical sequences
00:55:36at first,
00:55:36but rather in...
00:55:37rabbits?
00:55:39So,
00:55:39he came up
00:55:40with this interesting puzzle.
00:55:42What happens
00:55:42if you place
00:55:43a pair of rabbits
00:55:44in a certain space
00:55:45for a year?
00:55:46He also set
00:55:47some theoretical rules.
00:55:49For starters,
00:55:50all those bunnies
00:55:50come in boy-girl pairs,
00:55:52and they can start
00:55:52reproducing after
00:55:53just a month.
00:55:54Each month,
00:55:55each bunny pair
00:55:56adds one more pair
00:55:57of bunny offspring.
00:55:59The last rule
00:55:59was that all bunnies
00:56:00would be invincible
00:56:01for the year.
00:56:02Doing the math,
00:56:03he got this series
00:56:04of numbers.
00:56:051,
00:56:061,
00:56:062,
00:56:073,
00:56:085,
00:56:098,
00:56:09and so on.
00:56:11If you look
00:56:11at this series again,
00:56:13you'll notice
00:56:13that every number
00:56:14is the sum
00:56:15of the two before it.
00:56:16The first two,
00:56:17that's your starting
00:56:18bunny pair.
00:56:19Next,
00:56:20you'll see the number two,
00:56:21which is the first pair
00:56:22and their first
00:56:23offspring pair.
00:56:25Word caught on
00:56:26about this
00:56:26interesting sequence,
00:56:28and math lovers
00:56:29began studying it
00:56:30more closely.
00:56:31They started seeing
00:56:32this pattern very often
00:56:33in nature,
00:56:35like in how leaves
00:56:36grow on a plant
00:56:37or how seeds
00:56:38arrange on sunflowers.
00:56:39There's even a little
00:56:40experiment you can do
00:56:41to check it out.
00:56:43Start by grabbing
00:56:43some paper and a pen.
00:56:45Try drawing the
00:56:46Fibonacci spiral.
00:56:48Start with a tiny circle,
00:56:49then go bigger and bigger
00:56:51using those Fibonacci numbers.
00:56:53The first circle
00:56:54should just be a tiny
00:56:56dot on the paper,
00:56:58or the equivalent of zero.
00:56:59Next circle.
00:57:01One unit.
00:57:02Another circle.
00:57:03Still one unit.
00:57:04Keep it going,
00:57:05and you'll see that the
00:57:06circles form this
00:57:07spiral pattern.
00:57:08Even as it continues
00:57:09to grow,
00:57:09it keeps its shape.
00:57:11You might have also
00:57:11stumbled upon the
00:57:12Fibonacci spiral
00:57:13as a symbol of hypnosis.
00:57:15In all fairness,
00:57:16there's little evidence
00:57:17you can confuse someone
00:57:18by making them
00:57:19stare into a spiral
00:57:20for a while.
00:57:21But its effects
00:57:22on our focus
00:57:23and our optic nerves
00:57:24can't be ignored.
00:57:26After you've stared
00:57:27at a spinning spiral,
00:57:29you might see how
00:57:29objects get smaller
00:57:30or bigger,
00:57:31depending on the
00:57:32direction of the swirl.
00:57:34It's easy to understand
00:57:35why some experience
00:57:36this sensation
00:57:37as hypnotizing.
00:57:39This interesting
00:57:39series of numbers
00:57:40appears in our
00:57:41day-to-day lives,
00:57:42even if we don't
00:57:43notice it.
00:57:44It can also be used
00:57:45in more practical
00:57:46instances,
00:57:47like converting miles
00:57:48to kilometers.
00:57:50Let's look at the
00:57:50series 1,
00:57:512,
00:57:523,
00:57:535,
00:57:548,
00:57:5513.
00:57:55Pick any two numbers
00:57:58side-by-side.
00:58:00Say 13 and 21.
00:58:01Do the calculations
00:58:02and you'll notice
00:58:03that 13 miles
00:58:04is about 21 kilometers.
00:58:07Same with 34
00:58:08and 55.
00:58:10Music and math
00:58:11might not seem
00:58:12like they're connected,
00:58:13but if you had asked
00:58:14the great Mozart,
00:58:15he probably wouldn't
00:58:16have agreed.
00:58:17It seems he was
00:58:18very passionate
00:58:19about numbers
00:58:20from early on
00:58:20in his career.
00:58:21He loved finding
00:58:22cool number patterns
00:58:23in music,
00:58:24like some sort
00:58:25of hidden messages.
00:58:27His own sister
00:58:28even remembered him
00:58:28doodling math
00:58:29all the time,
00:58:30even on the sides
00:58:31of his music sheets.
00:58:32Some scholars believe
00:58:33he might have even
00:58:34played around
00:58:34with the Fibonacci numbers.
00:58:37If that's really the case,
00:58:39then he might have
00:58:39used the ration
00:58:40to balance out
00:58:41parts of his tunes.
00:58:43What about
00:58:43other types of art?
00:58:45Well,
00:58:45it's also said
00:58:46that Leonardo da Vinci
00:58:47used the golden ratio
00:58:48in his masterpieces,
00:58:50like the Vitruvian Man
00:58:51and the Mona Lisa.
00:58:52Also,
00:58:53when it comes to
00:58:54great pieces of architecture,
00:58:55the Parthenon
00:58:56might have used
00:58:57this pattern too.
00:58:58Anytime you see buildings
00:58:59with columns spaced
00:59:00just right,
00:59:02you can be certain
00:59:02that's where the builders
00:59:03drew inspiration from.
00:59:04The Great Pyramid of Giza
00:59:06is another great example.
00:59:08There's no official record
00:59:09to prove it,
00:59:10but the pyramid's shape
00:59:11is so close to the golden ratio
00:59:12that it's kind of obvious.
00:59:14You'll also see this pattern
00:59:15appearing naturally
00:59:16in our environment.
00:59:18Go out in our garden
00:59:18and check to see
00:59:19if you have any pinecones
00:59:20lying around.
00:59:21See those scales?
00:59:23They're set up in a pattern
00:59:24according to the Fibonacci sphere.
00:59:26Even the bones in our body
00:59:27seem to be growing
00:59:28based on the same proportions.
00:59:30We've got one torso,
00:59:32one head,
00:59:33and one heart.
00:59:34Then there's stuff
00:59:35that comes in pairs.
00:59:37Our arms,
00:59:38legs,
00:59:39eyes,
00:59:39and ears,
00:59:40for instance.
00:59:41For the number three,
00:59:43think about the composition
00:59:44of our limbs
00:59:45and the three main sections
00:59:47in our hand.
00:59:48The wrist part,
00:59:49the middle palm part,
00:59:50and our fingers,
00:59:51which are also split
00:59:52into three, by the way.
00:59:54Oh, speaking of fingers,
00:59:56their bone lengths
00:59:56have this ratio, too.
00:59:58This design helps
00:59:59our fingers move smoothly,
01:00:01especially when grabbing objects.
01:00:03The Fibonacci sequence
01:00:04can be seen
01:00:05in the way ocean waves curve
01:00:06and how rivers split
01:00:08and flow, too.
01:00:09Weather patterns
01:00:10can also follow this rule.
01:00:12Some whirlpools
01:00:13and hurricanes form
01:00:14and spread out
01:00:15in the same way
01:00:15the Fibonacci spiral does.
01:00:18Zoom out,
01:00:19and you'll see
01:00:19that spirals
01:00:20aren't just found
01:00:21here on Earth.
01:00:22They're also everywhere
01:00:23in space,
01:00:24and it isn't random.
01:00:25Most galaxies,
01:00:26including our Milky Way,
01:00:28are spirals.
01:00:29Think of it like this.
01:00:31Generally,
01:00:32stars in a young galaxy
01:00:33don't all appear at once.
01:00:35Some are faster
01:00:36when developing,
01:00:37others take their time.
01:00:39This makes gravity
01:00:40pull in different ways,
01:00:41making the young galaxy
01:00:42spin like a dragon.
01:00:43disk.
01:00:44As it spins,
01:00:45different levels of gravity
01:00:47stretch it into getting
01:00:48these spiral arms.
01:00:50On the flip side,
01:00:51if all the stars
01:00:52in a young galaxy
01:00:53appear at the same time,
01:00:54gravity just smushes it all
01:00:56into an egg shape,
01:00:58or what the astronomers call
01:00:59elliptical.
01:01:00That's it for today.
01:01:03So hey,
01:01:04if you pacified your curiosity,
01:01:06then give the video a like
01:01:07and share it with your friends.
01:01:08Or if you want more,
01:01:09just click on these videos
01:01:10and stay on the bright side.