Fresh evidence has been uncovered for the theory that our moon was created by a collision between Earth and a planet-sized object some 4.5 billion years ago. German scientists studied moon rocks gathered by astronauts nearly a half-century ago in the Apollo 11, 12 and 16 missions. They say the results show Earth was hit by a huge object called 'Theia' which led to the moon's formation. Scroll down for video Researchers analysed various kinds of oxygen atoms and found the moon rocks have a different makeup than Earth rocks do Many researchers believe the moon formed after Earth was hit by a planet the size of Mars billions of years ago.
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After the solar system formed 4.6 billion years ago, Earth was said to have been hit by a Mars-sized planet
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German scientists studied moon rocks gathered by astronauts nearly a half-century ago in the Apollo 11, 12 and 16 missions
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Results show Earth was hit by a huge object called 'Theia' which led to the moon's formation.
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Suggest moon may be a 50-50 mix of material from this object and Earth
Most models estimate that the moon it is composed of around 70% to 90% material from @placeholder, with the remaining 10% to 30% coming from the early Earth.