Earth's powerful gravity tugged the moon into its oddball shape long ago, shortly after both bodies formed, a new study suggests. Tidal forces exerted during the early days of the solar system can ...

The principal axis of the moon’s overall shape (the long axis of the lemon) is now separated from the gravity principal axis by about 34 degrees. (Excluding the large basins from the data, the ...

The shape of the moon deviates from a simple sphere in ways that scientists have struggled to explain. A new study by researchers at UC Santa Cruz shows that most of the moon's overall shape can ...

Interestingly, the researchers found that the moon's overall gravity field is no longer aligned with the topography, as it would have been when the tidal bulges were frozen into the moon's shape. The ...

Although our visit to its rocky surface confirmed that it’s not covered in vast seas, it’s not home to strange moon-men, and it’s not made of cheese, the moon can still surprise us. It’s ...

We might think that we know our closest celestial neighbour well, but it’s kept one secret hidden until now: it’s not round. In fact, it’s shaped like a lemon. New research, published in ...

Earth's powerful gravity tugged the moon into its oddball shape long ago, shortly after both bodies formed, a new study suggests. Tidal forces exerted during the early days of the solar system can ...