The Japanese research complex Kaguya has confirmed the presence of zones with anomalously low gravity on the far side of the Moon and studied their structure in detail
The presence of gravitational anomalies in different hemispheres of the Moon was known before, but their nature and features were not well understood. At the same time, without a detailed study of the anomalies of the gravitational field of the Moon, there can be no question of carrying out any safe flights of manned expeditions to the Moon. The first detailed data on the zones of gravitational anomalies on a natural satellite of the Earth were obtained by the Japanese orbital research complex Kaguya.
The study of the trajectories of the Kaguya orbital probe using the Doppler method by the RSTAR microsatellite delivered to the Moon by the Kaguya spacecraft made it possible to create high-precision maps of gravitational anomalies and compare them with the morphological formations on the Moon.
It turned out, in particular, that the anomalies in the opposite hemispheres of the moon are of a different nature. For the hemisphere facing the Earth, zones with anomalously high ("gravitational") are characteristic, for the opposite - with anomalously low ("antigravitational") gravity.
Such a difference in the distribution of anomalous zones can be interpreted as the presence in the first case of areas with a very high, in the second - a very low density of matter. However, this explanation is not the only one.
One of the strange features of lunar gravitational anomalies is the identification of at least some of the zones of anomalously high gravity with formations characteristic of the moon - the so-called seas. They are filled, according to radar sensing data, with a thick layer of dust - up to hundreds of meters.
Promotional video:
Lunar gravity anomalies on the back (left) and visible (right) sides of the Moon.
In the images of the lunar surface, obtained by ultra-high image cameras, characteristic formations formed by constantly falling dust are clearly visible - the thickness of its layer by the morphology of such formations can also be estimated at least tens of meters.
The Japanese probe continues to study the anomalies of the lunar gravitational field - the accuracy and detail of the data obtained will increase over time. More detailed information on the results of lunar research will be presented on the Research and Development portal - R & D. CNews.