Why don't we see meteor impacts on Earth like those on the Moon?

Arabia Weather - An asteroid or meteorite is more likely to hit the Earth because the Earth is much larger than the Moon, giving the meteorite a larger area to hit. But we can see thousands of craters on the surface of the moon, while we only see about 180 of them on Earth. How does that happen?

In fact, both the Moon and Earth have been hit many times during their long, 4.5 billion-year history.

Where did all the holes in the ground go?

The main difference between Earth and Moon; is that the Earth has processes that enable it to erase almost all evidence of past collisions, while the Moon does not have this ability. Almost any small dent made on the moon's surface will remain there.

3 processes that help keep the Earth's surface free of potholes

The first thing is called erosion

The Earth has weather, water, and plants, and these factors interact to break down and erode the Earth. Eventually, erosion can gradually reduce the effects of the craters until they become very little.

In contrast, the Moon suffers from almost fewer effects of erosion because it has no atmosphere. This means that it has no wind, no weather, and certainly no plants. On the moon, almost nothing can remove the marks on its surface once they are there. So much so that the traces of the footsteps of the astronauts who walked on the moon are still there today, and they will not fade anytime soon.

The second thing is tectonics

Tectonics are processes that cause new rocks to form on our planet's surface, to shed old rocks, and to metamorphose over millions of years. Because of tectonics, the Earth's surface has been recycled several times throughout its long history. As a result, there are very few rocks on Earth that are as old as those on the Moon. As for the moon, it has not had tectonic movement for billions of years. This is a much longer time for the craters to form and remain in place.

The third thing is volcanoes

Volcanic flows can cover impact craters. This is the main means by which impact craters are covered elsewhere in our solar system. However, it is less important than tectonics here on Earth. It is worth noting that the Moon in the past suffered from large volcanic flows that covered many of the larger collisions earlier, but it has not witnessed volcanoes for about three billion years.

What protects the Earth from meteorites?

Every day, an estimated 33 metric tons of meteorites hit the Earth on average, but most of them vanish or burn up upon entering the atmosphere and never reach the Earth's surface. As for the Moon, it does not have the same atmosphere that the Earth has, so there is a greater possibility of meteorites colliding with the Moon’s surface and forming lunar craters. Therefore, the number of meteorites that collide with the Moon is much greater than those that collide with the Earth.

In the end, the Moon may attract a little bit of space debris compared to the Earth, but the Moon is powerless to do anything after something from space hits it. Once something hits the moon, the event freezes. Conversely, Earth simply shakes off its impact craters and goes on with its life.

So it's no surprise that there are many more craters on the Moon than on Earth!

Sources:

nasa

alkaoun