Japanese scientists have analyzed data from Japan’s Kaguya lunar orbiter. They found significant carbon emissions from the moon.

The favoured secular hypothesis for the moon’s origin has a Mars-sized object colliding with Earth. The resulting hot material condensed into what is our moon. However, such a moon would be depleted of volatile compounds such as water and carbon.

Contrary to expectations, quite a bit of water has been found on the moon. Now these scientists have found significant carbon. This creates further problems for the ‘hot’ theory of the moon’s formation.

• Yokota, S. and 4 others, KAGUYA observation of global emissions of indigenous carbon ions from the Moon, Science. Advances 6:eaba1050, 6 May 2020.