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Space
Space
Science
Keith Cooper

Good news for lunar bases? Earth's atmosphere leaks all the way out to the moon

An illustration of particles moving through space from Earth to the moon with the sun to the left of the image and the Earth's magnetic field lines visible.

Atoms and molecules from Earth's atmosphere have been traveling across space to settle on the moon for billions of years, new research has found, explaining a lunar mystery that goes back to the Apollo missions.

Not only do the findings point to a way in which a historical record of Earth's atmosphere could be deposited on the moon, but they also imply a healthy abundance of elements that could be useful to humans should we ever set up a lunar base.

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