The Moon: A personal recollection and memorial for Professor Lawrence A. Taylor, an Apollo stalwart

Abstract

The first geochemical analysis of lunar samples returned by the Apollo 11 mission revealed that the Moon was highly differentiated and depleted in volatile elements. Stable isotope compositions show that Earth and Moon are closely related but they have evolved in totally dissimilar ways, probably related to the deficiency of water in the Moon as well as the vast differences in size. Currently available lunar samples come from cumulate source regions, making the establishment of a bulk planetary composition more reliant on geophysical rather than geochemical properties. Show more