9/8/2014 Atmosphere of the Moon

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Atmosphere of the Moon

by Tim Sharp, Reference Editor | October 15, 2012 01:02pm ET

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On the moon, there's no air to breathe, no breezes to make the flags planted there by the Apollo missions flutter. However,
there is a very, very thin layer of gases on the lunar surface that can almost be called an atmosphere. Technically, it's
considered an exosphere.

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9/8/2014 Atmosphere of the Moon

In an exosphere, the gases are so spread out that they rarely collide with one another. They are rather like microscopic
cannon balls flying unimpeded on curved, ballistic trajectories and bouncing across the lunar surface. In the moon's
atmosphere, there are only 100 molecules per cubic centimeter. In comparison, Earth's atmosphere at sea level has about
100 billion billion molecules per cubic centimeter. The total mass of these gases is about 55,000 pounds (25,000
kilograms), about the same weight as a loaded dump truck.

Several elements have been detected in the lunar atmosphere. The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter recently detected helium.
Detectors left by Apollo astronauts have detected argon-40, helium-4, oxygen, methane, nitrogen, carbon monoxide and

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The slim, bright crescent, known as the Lunar Horizon Glow (LHG) was glimpsed several
times during Apollo missions. This picture was taken with the Clementine spacecraft,
when the sun was behind the moon. The white area on the edge of the moon is the LHG, and the bright dot
at the top is the planet Venus.
Credit: NASAView full size image

carbon dioxide. Earth-based spectrometers have detected sodium and potassium, while the Lunar Prospector orbiter
found radioactive isotopes of radon and polonium.

One of the sources for the moon's atmosphere is outgassing, the release of gases from the lunar interior, usually due to
radioactive decay. Outgassing events may also occur during moonquakes. After being released, lighter gases escape into
space almost immediately. Outgassing replenishes the tenuous atmosphere.

The impact of sunlight, the solar wind and micrometeorites hitting the moon's surface can also release gases that were
buried in the lunar soil ​
— a process called sputtering. These gases either fly off into space or bounce along the lunar
surface. Sputtering may explain how water ice collected in lunar craters. Comets hitting the moon may have left some
water molecules on the surface. Some of the molecules then accumulated in dark polar craters, forming beds of solid ice.

Moon glow

Ultraviolet sunlight affects the released gases by ejecting electrons, which gives them an electrical charge that can cause the
particles to levitate more than a mile into the sky. At night, the opposite occurs. Atoms receive electrons from the solar
wind and settle back down near the surface.

This floating fountain of moon dust travels along the boundary between night and day, creating a glow similar to Earth
sunsets. Known as the Lunar Horizon Glow, it was observed several times during Apollo missions.

Apollo astronauts described moon dust as gritty, abrasive and clingy. It can wreak havoc on equipment and computers.
Moonwalkers were coated in it and their spacesuits were almost threadbare when they returned to Earth. Much more will
need to be learned about lunar dust before NASA returns astronauts to the moon.

— Tim Sharp, SPACE.com Reference Editor

Related:

Water on the Moon: Hydrogen, Oxygen and Energy (Video)

Earth's Moon: Formation, Composition and Orbit
Mars' Atmosphere: Composition, Climate & Weather

Further reading:

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