In article <
dd5c346f-e2d4-47b1...@4g2000yql.googlegroups.com>,
Brad Guth <
brad...@gmail.com> writes:
> There's more solar derived tidal influence than obtained from Earth.
With regard to the Moon's interior heat -- which seems to be the
question underlying this thread -- the Sun is more important than the
Earth simply because the Moon doesn't rotate with respect to the
Earth but does with respect to the Sun. The Earth's tidal _force_ on
the Moon is much larger than the Sun's.
> Even the 19 month cycle of Venus passing within 110 LD could cause
> some measurable morphing of the moon, though not much heat generated.
I doubt any influence of Venus is measureable, even given the extreme
precision of modern measurements via the retroreflectors.
> The thorium and uranium innards of our moon could be still going
> strong,
I'm not sure of the Moon's internal composition, but I'd be surprised
if radioactive elements do not contribute to the heating. I'd expect
radioactive heating and residual heat of formation to be far larger
than tidal heating, but I confess I haven't done the calculation.
For radioactive heating, I'd expect potassium-40 to be one of the
most important isotopes unless it has been depleted.
> although residual formation heat is the most likely core of
> energy that we could safely tap into.
That "tap into," safely or otherwise, doesn't look likely.
--
Help keep our newsgroup healthy; please don't feed the trolls.
Steve Willner Phone
617-495-7123 swil...@cfa.harvard.edu
Cambridge, MA 02138 USA