The Big Splat, or How Our Moon Came to Be

Rating:
Summary: A well-written overview of the theories of the moon's origin
Review: While the Apollo astronauts collected rocks from the lunar surface, their mentors on Earth debate whether the moon originated as the Earth's `daughter', `sister' or `spouse' - each of which theories had its eminent advocates, its good points and its faults. At first, it seemed that the moonrocks had not resolved the issue, but in the mid-1980s, out of left field, came the `giant impact' theory (the Big Splat of Mackenzie's title) which combined all the good points of the earlier theories without their faults. If you wish to know how scientists came to realise how the moon formed, then this delightful and eminently readable book is for you.