Mars Is Destroying Its Own Moon

Luckily for Phobos, scientists think it has at least 30 million years before it kicks the bucket.
Mars' moon Phobos is slowly crumbling.
Mars' moon Phobos is slowly crumbling.
Credit: Handout via Getty Images

Like Jeb Bush's presidential campaign, the largest of Mars' two moons is falling apart.

NASA researchers pointed to grooves in Phobos' surface -- which they likened to stretch marks -- as proof of its demise. The grooves were the result of tidal forces created by Mars' gravitational pull.

Just like Earth's moon orbits Earth, Phobos orbits Mars, but Phobos is much closer to its planet than any other moon in the solar system, and it's only moving closer.

In the past, scientists thought Phobos was solid enough to withstand the pressure; now they think that that isn't the case.

Essentially, Mars is destroying its own moon.

Luckily, researchers said, Phobos has plenty of time to check everything off its proverbial bucket list -- at least 30 million years.

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