A new study reveals that "the illusion of man in the moon" is due to lunar vortices – NASA

When you look at a full moon on a clear night, you may wonder about the appearance of a human face on the surface of the moon.

This illusion is often called "the man on the moon" and is defined by the light and dark parts of the lunar facade. In some ancient myths, the face is that of a man banished to the moon for committing a crime.

But what is the science behind the moon that seems to convey the appearance of a human face?

According to a new study, published in the Journal of Geophysical Researchit's the lunar whirlpool 40 miles long created by the magnetic lava flowing beneath the surface of the moon. These vortices lead to the materialization of patterns and shapes on the rocky satellite.

"Lunar vortices are collections of finely structured, bright and dark surface markings, alternating on length scales generally between 1 and 5 km," says the study. "Whirlpools are thought to form where local magnetic fields protect parts of the lunar surface from exposure to the solar wind or when these magnetic fields result in the sorting of some of the finest lunar soils.

These swirls are not a new discovery as NASA has known them for decades and recorded the Reiner Gamma Tourbillon with the Lunar Recognition Orbiter. But it is the first time that conclusions have been drawn about their causes.

Recent research, conducted by scientists from Rutgers University and the University of California at Berkeley, has mapped lunar vortices using computer models.

Narrow magnetic zones are the places where these vortices have been found and are linked to the old underground tunnels called lava tubes. These extremely magnetic zones are connected to the strong volcanic activity of the lunar past and deflect the particles in the solar winds, causing the darkness of certain areas of the moon.

"These magnetized rocks were probably injected into the crust in the form of dikes or underground lava channels and cooled slowly, improving the metal content," wrote the authors. ;study.

The lunar whirlpools creating bright, dark areas of the moon can now explain why we interpret a human face in the moon.