© Cedarville University International Conference on Creationism. The views expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent those of Cedarville University. Stenberg, D. 2023. Craters and cracks caused by accelerated nuclear decay heat throughout the solar system. In J.H. Whitmore (editor), Proceedings of the Ninth International Conference on Creationism, pp. 11-65. Cedarville, Ohio: Cedarville University International Conference on Creationism. CRATERS AND CRACKS CAUSED BY ACCELERATED NUCLEAR DECAY HEAT THROUGHOUT THE SOLAR SYSTEM Don Stenberg, 695 Goodnight Hollow Rd. Walnut Shade, MO 65771, dnstnbrg@hotmail.com ABSTRACT Recently discovered thermal expansion cracks on the Moon and Mars can be best explained by an episode of major thermal expansion caused by accelerated nuclear decay (A.N.D.). Likewise the major volcanic flows of Mars (Tharsis volcanos) and the moon (lunar maria) are best explained by heat from A.N.D. Other phenomena such as the apparent resurfacing of Venus, excess heat from the gas giants, the transient Martian hydrosphere, the decay of the lunar magnetic field, the cryovolcanoes found on Pluto, etc. are also consistent with being caused by this pulse of decay heat. This same heat could have caused massive phreatic explosions on the rocky planets and moons resulting in crater formation. Early Creation Scientists believed that internal processes like volcanism formed the craters, and the uniqueness of ‘impact signatures’ has been overstated. Lunar craters associated with rilles, central peaks, and irregular mare patches are best explained as a phreatic explosion followed by significant lava flows. Mare lavas contain sufficient quantities of radioactive isotopes to cause the massive explosions needed to form the mare craters. Possible explosion mechanisms are considered, and the crater explosion hypothesis is compared with the crater impact hypothesis. KEY WORDS Accelerated radioactive decay, solar system, Mars, moon, thermal expansion cracks, craters, maria, Tharsis volcanoes I. INTRODUCTION Since Galileo first used a telescope to look carefully at the moon, scientists have wondered what processes caused the formation of the craters and maria. Over the last several decades, NASA’s orbiters and landers have been able to return large amounts of detailed data and imagery not only of the moon but of many rocky planets and moons throughout the solar system. Many early creation scientists noted the similarities between the craters seen on the moon and the craters seen in volcanically active regions of the Earth, but lacking a volcanic mechanism capable of generating such voluminous craters, most scientists today believe that the craters were largely formed as the result of impacts. With the RATE project’s discovery of significant evidence for at least one pulse of accelerated nuclear decay, we finally have the possibility of an internal energy source capable of generating the enormous craters we see on the moon and elsewhere. This paper will first begin with a comprehensive survey of evidence for the effects of heat from accelerated radioactive decay throughout the solar system (except for craters) and then will go into detail with reasons to believe that the craters may also be an effect of this same decay heat. II. EVIDENCE FOR ACCELERATED NUCLEAR DECAY HEAT THROUGHOUT THE SOLAR SYSTEM A. Major Thermal Expansion Cracks on the Moon and Mars Recent NASA missions have given us more detail and more information about the Moon and Mars than we have ever had before. One of the most significant achievements has been their ability to create relatively detailed gravity maps of the Moon and Mars. Gravity maps can reveal important information about what sorts of structures exist below the surface of a planet, because density differences will show up as higher or lower gravity fields than would otherwise be expected. NASA’s GRAIL (Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory) mission to the Moon used a pair of spacecraft, orbiting relatively near the lunar surface, to get an exceptionally clear picture (Figure 1) of its gravity field. The large, straight blue cracks around the perimeter of the maria are not structures that could be produced by impacts, but instead appear to be thermal expansion cracks. As the interior of the Moon heated up rather suddenly, especially under the maria, the overlying cooler rock was stretched apart until it ruptured and these cracks formed and subsequently filled with lava (Zuber et. al., 2014). The lava has been enriched in radioactive elements like Thorium, Uranium, and Potassium-40 compared to the rest of the rocks found on the Moon. Apparently, the near side of the Moon was created with a higher inventory of radioactive isotopes than the far side, which would be why the near side has large lava flows while far side is largely devoid of lava-filled craters. (Figure 2, Figure 3) This asymmetry may also be associated with Earth’s gravity similar to a single tidal motion as the moon heated and plastic deformation occurred. Maria Zuber, MIT’s Vice President for research and a leader of the team that analyzed the data said about the source of heat that caused the cracking, “It could be due to radioactive decay of heat-producing elements in the deep interior….People who thought that all this volcanism was related to a gigantic impact need to go back and think 9th 2023
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