1
⬇️
Go Deeper
When asteroids and meteorites slam into the Moon at speeds over 40,000 miles per hour, the explosive impact vaporizes rock and carves out bowl-shaped scars we call craters.
2
⬇️
Go Deeper
The Moon's lack of atmosphere means meteorites hit at full speed with zero air resistance, creating far larger craters than identical impacts would on Earth.
3
⬇️
Go Deeper
Most lunar craters formed billions of years ago during the "Late Heavy Bombardment," when the inner solar system was a chaotic shooting gallery of space rocks.
4
⬇️
Go Deeper
The Moon's largest impact basin, the South Pole-Aitken, is so massive it punched through the crust and exposed the mantle beneath the surface.
5
⬇️
Go Deeper
Impact craters reveal lunar geology like a cross-section—scientists study their layers to understand the Moon's internal structure and composition history.
6
⬇️
Go Deeper
Crater rays—bright streaks radiating from fresh impacts—are pulverized rock ejected outward, gradually darkening as solar radiation ages the exposed material.
7
⬇️
Go Deeper
Some lunar craters contain permanently shadowed regions cold enough to preserve water ice for billions of years—potential resources for future Moon bases.
8
⬇️
Go Deeper
Central peaks in large craters form when the Moon's crust rebounds after impact, like ripples in water, creating mountain peaks inside crater bowls.
9
⬇️
Go Deeper
Seismic data from Apollo missions showed that crater impacts trigger moonquakes lasting hours, revealing the Moon has a partially molten core unlike Earth's.
10
⬇️
Go Deeper
COMPLETE
Recent studies suggest ancient lunar impacts may have triggered volcanic eruptions by fracturing the crust, fundamentally reshaping the Moon's entire surface evolution.
Three ways to keep going — in the app:
Where would you have taken it? Fork this trail in the app and steer it your own way.
Make a trail about your world
That was 10 levels, two sentences at a time — no wall of text. Your kid's obsession, a health question, your weirdest hobby: see who actually reads what you share.
