Why are moon rocks useful in estimating the age of the earth?

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Question: Why are moon rocks useful in estimating the age of the earth?

Option A: There is no erosion by water on the moon
- This statement points to a key reason why lunar rocks retain their original radiometric signatures: the Moon has no liquid water to cause weathering or erosion. Without water-driven alteration, the isotopic systems in moon rocks stay closed, allowing us to read the rocks’ true formation ages. This directly supports using moon rocks to infer the age of the Earth, since Earth and Moon formed around a similar time and lunar rocks preserve primordial isotopic information.

Option B: There are no zircon crystals on the moon
- Zircon crystals are just one mineral that can host isotopic dating (e.g., U-Pb in zircon). The absence of zircon on the Moon is not the fundamental reason moon rocks help date Earth. Even without zircon, other minerals (like lead-bearing minerals) can provide radiometric ages. So this claim does not explain why moon rocks are useful for age estimates.

Option C: There is no wind erosion on the moon
- The Moon’s lack of an atmosphere means there is no wind erosion. While this is true and contributes to preserving surface rocks, the whole question centers on the usefulness of moon rocks for dating Earth’s age. Wind erosion is not the sole or primary reason lunar rocks yield reliable ages. It is related, but not as directly explanatory as the water-erosion argument.

Option D: There is no seismic activity on the moon
- Moonquakes do occur, though less frequent and intense than Earthquakes. The presence or absence of seismic activity is not the principal factor in why moon rocks can be used to estimate Earth’s age. Seismic activity would affect geological processes on the Moon, but dating minerals relies more on preservation of radiometric systems rather than the absence of moonquakes.

In summary, the strongest link is that the Moon has no liquid water and minimal weathering processes to alter rocks, which helps preserve their original ages. Among the options, A most directly captures this critical point, while the others describe true facts that are less central to the dating utility of lunar samples.

My LMS Subjects Quiz Topic 3: Formation of the solar system

Why are moon rocks useful in estimating the age of the earth?

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