As humans are all set to visit the moon again, speculations and theories regarding its formation billions of years back have now started ruling the internet again.
Several previous research reports had suggested that the moon was formed following a collision between the young earth and a Mars-sized object called Theia, around 4.5 billion years ago.
These research reports also noted that the Moon was created due to the gradual accumulation of debris from this impact.
However, a new theory now suggests that the moon was formed within hours of the impact.
Scientists at Durham University used the most detailed supercomputer simulations to suggest an alternative explanation for the Moon's origin, with a giant impact immediately placing a Moon-like body into orbit around Earth.
The research team who took part in the study also include scientists from NASA's Ames Research Centre and the University of Glasgow.
"We went into this project not knowing exactly what the outcomes of these very high-resolution simulations would be. So, on top of the big eye-opener that standard resolutions can give you wrong answers, it was extra exciting that the new results could include a tantalisingly Moon-like satellite in orbit," said Jacob Kegerreis, lead researcher of the study.
According to the research report, the new finding could even reshape the previous assumptions regarding the constitution of moon's geological constituents.
Vincent Eke, co-author of the study said: "This formation route could help explain the similarity in isotopic composition between the lunar rocks returned by the Apollo astronauts and Earth's mantle."
