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IPS fellow M. Cuk explains origin of the Moon's orbit

Oct 12, 2007

IPS post-doctoral researcher and National Fellow of the Canadian Institute for Theoretical Physics Matija Cuk has published a paper in the journal Science which solves the mystery of the Moon's unexplained current orbital eccentricity is a results of resonances with the orbits of Jupiter and Venus. Despite the tiny effect of gravity from these planets on the Moon, over the eons the cumulative effects can explain the present lunar orbit.

See a story on the Australian Boardcasting Corp site or the Science article itself (the latter may require an online subscription to the journal).




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Institute of Planetary Science
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