Researchers studying data from the LADEE (Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer) spacecraft have discovered that the airless moon is surrounded by a thin, asymmetrical dust cloud caused by the high-speed impacts of dust particles from comets.
The lunar cloud’s density increases during annual meteor showers. Dust density peaks in the direction of the moon’s orbital motion. Apollo astronauts reported a “horizon glow” around the moon, but the new dust discovery is not dense enough and is too close to the surface to explain those observations.
Source SPACE.com: All about our solar system, outer space and exploration.
Source: http://www.space.com/29680-moon-dust-cloud-explained-infographic.html
