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    Science

    Venus may have swallowed its own moon

    Reuters reports on a new theory to explain why Venus lacks a moon despite its similarities to Earth in size, mass and structure.

    Joe WilliamsJW
    ReutersRE
    IUX24IU
    3 Sources, 34d ago, first seen 34d ago

    TLDR

    Reuters reports that a new astrophysics study suggests Venus may have swallowed a moon it once had.

    A post describing a paper by UC Riverside’s Stephen Kane outlines how that could happen: tidal interactions could slow Venus’s spin and reverse a hypothetical moon’s outward migration. The moon would then spiral inward and break into a debris ring, with most of the debris falling onto Venus.

    Combined views

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    3 Sources, first seen 34d ago

    20 likes1 comments8 saves10 reposts

    Combined views

    36.2K

    3 Sources, first seen 34d ago

    20 likes1 comments8 saves10 reposts

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    3 Sources

    Joe Williams@joewilliamsVenus has no moon. Earth got one from a giant impact. Venus took big hits too. So either it never formed or it formed one and lost it. A new paper from Stephen Kane (UC Riverside) models that second case. They couple Venus’s spin to a moon’s orbit under tides from both the itself and the Sun, using two different tidal models so the result isn’t tied to one assumption about the planet’s interior. A moon outside the synchronous orbit migrates outward. At the same time it despins Venus, which expands that synchronous boundary. Outward drift scales with moon mass. The expanding boundary scales with mass squared. If the boundary catches the moon, migration reverses. The orbit collapses, the moon crosses the Roche limit, breaks into a debris ring, and most of the debris falls onto Venus. Survival is a narrow window: a post-impact Venus rotation day between 10-12 hours, and a moon not much more massive than Earth’s could hang in orbit. Faster spin or a heavier moon and the constant-Q runs destroy it in roughly 30 million to 1.7 billion years. Giant-impact simulations that leave Venus with something like its present rotation tend to sit on the wrong side of that line. Although we don't exactly know, but our best models show the planets like Earth and Venus were spinning much faster 4.5 billion years ago. Models working backwards show that Earth was about 2-5 hours per day and Venus was around 48 hour day. It didn't spin fast enough to catch an Earth similar moon. The paper doesn’t claim Venus had a moon. It says that if one formed under plausible impact conditions, tidal evolution alone would remove it and leave it with an empty sky.34d
    Reuters@ReutersA California-based astrophysicist presented a new theory to explain why Venus, the planet most like Earth in size, mass and structure, lacks its own moon. Call it a case of celestial cannibalism https://reut.rs/4dg7H0q30d
    IUX24@IUX24_OfficialA new astrophysics study suggests that Venus may have swallowed its own ancient moon billions of years ago, offering a possible explanation for why Earth’s twin planet has no natural satellite today. Researchers propose that Venus’ extremely slow rotation created tidal forces that caused a hypothetical moon to spiral inward and eventually collide with the planet. Unlike Earth’s Moon, which slowly moves away from our planet, a Venusian moon may have faced a very different fate. The discovery could reshape scientists’ understanding of planetary evolution, moon formation, and the unique differences between Earth and Venus. Read more on IUX24. #Venus #space #astrophysics #science #iux2430d
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    3 Sources

    Joe Williams@joewilliamsVenus has no moon. Earth got one from a giant impact. Venus took big hits too. So either it never formed or it formed one and lost it. A new paper from Stephen Kane (UC Riverside) models that second case. They couple Venus’s spin to a moon’s orbit under tides from both the itself and the Sun, using two different tidal models so the result isn’t tied to one assumption about the planet’s interior. A moon outside the synchronous orbit migrates outward. At the same time it despins Venus, which expands that synchronous boundary. Outward drift scales with moon mass. The expanding boundary scales with mass squared. If the boundary catches the moon, migration reverses. The orbit collapses, the moon crosses the Roche limit, breaks into a debris ring, and most of the debris falls onto Venus. Survival is a narrow window: a post-impact Venus rotation day between 10-12 hours, and a moon not much more massive than Earth’s could hang in orbit. Faster spin or a heavier moon and the constant-Q runs destroy it in roughly 30 million to 1.7 billion years. Giant-impact simulations that leave Venus with something like its present rotation tend to sit on the wrong side of that line. Although we don't exactly know, but our best models show the planets like Earth and Venus were spinning much faster 4.5 billion years ago. Models working backwards show that Earth was about 2-5 hours per day and Venus was around 48 hour day. It didn't spin fast enough to catch an Earth similar moon. The paper doesn’t claim Venus had a moon. It says that if one formed under plausible impact conditions, tidal evolution alone would remove it and leave it with an empty sky.34d
    Reuters@ReutersA California-based astrophysicist presented a new theory to explain why Venus, the planet most like Earth in size, mass and structure, lacks its own moon. Call it a case of celestial cannibalism https://reut.rs/4dg7H0q30d
    IUX24@IUX24_OfficialA new astrophysics study suggests that Venus may have swallowed its own ancient moon billions of years ago, offering a possible explanation for why Earth’s twin planet has no natural satellite today. Researchers propose that Venus’ extremely slow rotation created tidal forces that caused a hypothetical moon to spiral inward and eventually collide with the planet. Unlike Earth’s Moon, which slowly moves away from our planet, a Venusian moon may have faced a very different fate. The discovery could reshape scientists’ understanding of planetary evolution, moon formation, and the unique differences between Earth and Venus. Read more on IUX24. #Venus #space #astrophysics #science #iux2430d
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