Venus May Have Devoured Its Moon
Ritsuko KawaiScienceSep 24, 2026 5:15 AMVenus May Have Devoured Its MoonOne of the great mysteries in astronomy has been why Venus has no moon. Now a new theory provides a simple answer: It might have been eaten.Photograph: NASA/APL/NRLCommentLoaderSave StorySave this storyCommentLoaderSave StorySave this storyVenus has nearly the same mass, size, and structure as Earth, which has led astronomers to believe it should have a moon, but it doesn’t. It is technically possible that a moon never formed, but scientists have also come up with several scenarios to describe how Venus could have lost its satellite.One previously presented hypothesis is that Venus’ moon was destroyed by a collision with some massive celestial body.
- ▪Ritsuko KawaiScienceSep 24, 2026 5:15 AMVenus May Have Devoured Its MoonOne of the great mysteries in astronomy has been why Venus has no moon.
- ▪Now a new theory provides a simple answer: It might have been eaten.Photograph: NASA/APL/NRLCommentLoaderSave StorySave this storyCommentLoaderSave StorySave this storyVenus has nearly the same mass, size, and structure as Earth, which has
- ▪It is technically possible that a moon never formed, but scientists have also come up with several scenarios to describe how Venus could have lost its satellite.One previously presented hypothesis is that Venus’ moon was destroyed by a coll
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| Original publisher | WIRED |
| Canonical URL | https://www.wired.com/story/venus-may-have-devoured-its-moon/ |
| Publication time | Thu, 24 Sep 2026 09:15:00 +0000 |
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Ritsuko KawaiScienceSep 24, 2026 5:15 AMVenus May Have Devoured Its MoonOne of the great mysteries in astronomy has been why Venus has no moon. Now a new theory provides a simple answer: It might have been eaten.Photograph: NASA/APL/NRLCommentLoaderSave StorySave this storyCommentLoaderSave StorySave this storyVenus has nearly the same mass, size, and structure as Earth, which has led astronomers to believe it should have a moon, but it doesn’t. It is technically possible that a moon never formed, but scientists have also come up with several scenarios to describe how Venus could have lost its satellite.One previously presented hypothesis is that Venus’ moon was destroyed by a collision with some massive celestial body.
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