Larry Taylor reflects on types of rocks on the Moon and the contrast between the lunar highlands and the maria.

Moon rocks: a scientist's view

How was the Moon created? What is the moon made off?
Decades after human’s first landed on the Moon, we still lots of questions about the Earth’s only natural satellite.
Through the rocks brought back from various missions to the Moon we’ve been given a fascinating insight not only into the moons composition but also into the history of our solar system.
But there remains a vast amount of the Moon’s lunar surface to discover, and there are still numerous theories as to how our Moon came to be.
In this collection scientists discuss examining the first moon rocks and through the Open University’s virtual microscope you can explore these samples for yourself. The collection also provides an animation showing the Moon’s orbit and explains the three main theories that explain the origin of the Moon.