Over 4.6 billion years ago, the early Earth emerged from a swirling disk of gas and dust encircling the young sun. This primordial material collided and coalesced, forming larger bodies through the ...

Over 4.6 billion years ago, Earth took shape from a spinning cloud of dust and gas surrounding the young sun. Tiny particles within this cloud collided and clumped together, driven by gravity and ...

"During the early solar system's game of cosmic billiards, Earth was struck by a neighbor,” said Dauphas. “It was a lucky shot. Without the moon's steadying influence on our planet's tilt, the climate ...