What Color Is the Moon? - Earth How The color of the moon is mostly grey. And the lunar maria are dark grey. The 4 most dominant rocks are: mare basalts, breccia, anorthosite and regolith.
· archived 5/18/2026, 12:38:35 AM screenshot cached html click to expand What Color Is the Moon? - Earth How Skip to content Atmosphere Biology Career Geology Space Water Search Toggle Menu Search Home » Outer Space » Moon » What Color Is the Moon?What Color Is the Moon? Moon | Outer Space Hours Updated onMay 13, 2022 Categories Moon, Outer Space “The moon doesn’t emit its own light. Instead, it reflects light from the sun. Up close, the moon’s surface is mostly grey like worn asphalt pavement” What color is the moon? It’s mostly grey because of the types of rocks we can find on the moon. And the more we learn about lunar rocks, the more we can understand how the Earth and Moon formed. This is because every sample we collect and interpret from the moon is like building an archive. And we get a clearer picture as the archive expands. So now you know why it’s important to study moon rocks, what types of rocks are on the moon? Which rocks are on the Moon? There are 4 dominant types of rocks on the moon: MARE BASALTS: Mare basalts are black volcanic basalts common in the lunar maria. These are the flood basalts that formed during a period of volcanic activity 3 billion years ago.BRECCIA Breccia aren’t rounded. Instead, these types of rocks are sharp and jagged. They formed during meteoric collisions and are commonly found in the moon’s craters.ANORTHOSITE Anorthosite is common in lunar highland areas. They formed in lunar magma oceans experiencing frequent melting. These rocks are the oldest on the moon’s surface.REGOLITH Regolith is shattered rock on the moon’s surface. Most of the moon’s surface is covered with meters of this dusty type of material. What are the dark spots on the Moon? Long ago, early scientists believed they could see oceans on the moon so they called them “maria”. But the dark stretches on the surface of the moon were not oceans at all. What the lunar maria actually turned out to be were flat flood basalts. These formed during a period of volcanic activity 3 billion years ago. There is no water on the moon. This means there is no chance that humans can ever colonize the moon The moon does not have plate tectonics so nothing changes on the moon. That’s why we characterize the moon as a “dead” planetary body. READ MORE: 9 Lunar Facts About the Moon What Color Is the Moon? The 4 dominant types of rocks on the moon are mare basalts, breccia, anorthosite, and regolith. Altogether, the moon has mostly grey colors with dark spots known as Lunar Maria. These online courses offer in-depth information about the topic of astronomy and our solar system. If you are interested, then check out these courses for more details. Astrophysics CoursesEarth Science CoursesAstronomy Courses We want to hear what you have to say! Please use the comment form below and let us know what your thoughts are. Earth Age: How Old Is the Earth? Alpha Centauri (Rigil Kentaurus): Our Sun’s Closest Neighbor Planet Formation and the Core Accretion Theory 5 Facts About the Sun [Infographic] 10 Planet Venus Facts [Infographic] Facts About Asteroids and Our Asteroid Belt Shape of the Earth: The Oblate SpheroidHow to Measure the Distance to the MoonThe History of the Universe: The Big Bang and Beyond [Infographic]A Visual Guide to Our Solar System [Infographic]Earth’s Doppelgängers: A List of Earth Like Planets5 Facts of Ice-Cold Planet Uranus [Infographic]What’s the Difference Between Meteors, Meteorites and Meteoroids?Main Sequence Star: Our Sun’s Thermonuclear Reaction Leave a ReplyYour email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *Comment *Name * Email * Learn Earth Science CATEGORIES Atmosphere Career Geology Nature Space Water Features Articles Infographics About Articles Contact How To Cite Privacy Policy Terms of Service © 2022 Earth How Atmosphere Biology Career Geology Space Water Toggle Menu Close Search for: Search