Moon Dust and Debris

If the Moon were billions of years old, it should have accumulated a
thick layer of dust and debris from meteoritic bombardment. Before
instruments were placed on the Moon, some scientists were very
concerned that astronauts would sink into a sea of dust--possibly a
mile in thickness (a). This did not happen. Very little meteoritic
debris is on the Moon. In fact, after examining rocks and dust brought
back from the Moon, scientists learned that only about 1/67th of the
dust and debris came from outer space. Recent measurements of the
influx rate of meteoritic material on the Moon also do not support an
old Moon.

a. Before instruments were sent to the Moon, Isaac Asimov made some
interesting, but false, predictions. After estimating the great depths
of dust that should be on the Moon, Asimov dramatically ended his
article by stating:

"I get a picture, therefore, of the first spaceship, picking out a
nice level place for landing purposes, coming in slowly downward tail-
first and sinking majestically out of sight." Isaac Asimov, "14
Million Tons of Dust Per Year," Science Digest, January 1959, p. 36.