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Oded Aharonson
Professor, Planetary Science
B.S. 1994, Cornell University
M.Eng. 1995, Cornell University
Ph.D. 2002, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
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Research Interests
Exoplanets |
Mars Surface Simulations & Experiments |
Mars Sedimentology & Stratigraphy |
Mars Exploration Rover |
Mars Bedrock Mineralogy |
Planetary Geomorphology |
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The Man in the Moon |
Titan's Lakes |
The probability of selecting each configuration depends upon the ratio of the asymmetry of the potential energy maxima, dominated by the octupole moment of the Moon, to the energy dissipated per tidal cycle within the Moon. If this ratio is small, the two configurations are equally likely. Otherwise, interesting dynamical behavior ensues. In the Moon's present orbit,with the best-estimated geophysical parameters and dissipation parameter Q=35, trapping into the current higher-energy configuration is preferred. With Q=100 in analogy with the solid Earth, the current configuration is nearly certain. The ratio of energies and corresponding probabilities were different in the past. Relative crater counts on the leading and trailing faces indicate an impact may have unlocked the Moon before it settled into the present configuration. Our analysis constrains the geophysical parameters at the time of the last such event.
The work is reported in:
Aharonson O., Goldreich P., Sari R., Why do we see the man
in the Moon?, Icarus, 219 (1), 241–243, 2012.
[DOI: 10.1016/j.icarus.2012.02.019]