Planets
How Earth got its moon
How did our moon form? Scientists are still debating the answer. It may be the result of some one big impact with Earth — or perhaps many small ones.
MS-ESS1-4
Construct a scientific explanation based on evidence from rock strata for how the geologic time scale is used to organize Earth's 4.6-billion-year-old history.
More Stories in MS-ESS1-4
-
EarthCool Jobs: Mapping the unknown
Scientists find different ways of exploring places humans will never visit — and drawing maps to help us better understand such mysterious places.
-
SpacePollution may give ‘first’ stars a youthful look
The oldest stars should be made of only light elements. But these suns may have sucked up heavier elements, giving them a more youthful appearance, a new study finds.
-
PlanetsAsteroids boiled young Earth’s oceans
At least two asteroids hit Earth 3.3 billion years ago. This superheated the atmosphere, boiled the oceans and shaped how early life evolved.
-
ChemistryCooking up life for the first time
The basic components for life could have emerged together nearly 4 billion years ago on the surface of Earth, chemists report.
-
SpaceAstronomers spy fastest speeding star
A few stars have been spotted departing our galaxy. The fastest of these might have been propelled by another exploding star, a new study finds.
-
FossilsDino double whammy
Most scientists think an asteroid helped kill off the dinosaurs. But new calculations suggest that asteroid might have gotten some help from a long series of volcanic eruptions in what is now India.
-
EarthWhen life exploded
Life exploded in diversity during the Cambrian Period. Experts are exploring what could account for this sudden change 540 million years ago.