The Moon was most likely formed after a Mars-sized protoplanet hit Earth around 4.5 billion years ago.
The main evidence is derived from the chemical analysis of lunar rock samples retrieved during the Apollo 11 mission.
Other theories suggest that the Moon was captured by the Earth's gravitational field or that it comes from the same protoplanetary disk as Earth.
1. The most accepted theory states that a Mars-sized protoplanet, sometimes known as Theia, collided with the Earth.
2. An alternative impact theory from researchers at the Weizmann Institute of Science posits that the Moon was created from multiple, smaller impacts between the Earth and other bodies.
3. The capture theory postulates that the Moon was a rocky wandering body that was captured by the Earth’s gravitational field as it flew by.
iStock solarseven/iStock4. The fission theory states that the Moon broke away from the Earth at the beginning of the Solar System.
5. According to the Co-accretion theory of the Moon theory, the Moon formed at the same time as the Earth —independently of each other but within the same protoplanetary disk