A new study has revealed the moon is 4.47 billion-years-old, after a team of planetary scientists discovered it was formed 95 million years after the birth of the solar system.

This makes the Earth's moon up to 60 million years younger than some previous estimates, a study published on Wednesday found.

Researchers used a new way to calculate the birthday of the planet's only natural satellite.

Download the new Independent Premium app Sharing the full story, not just the headlines

Astronomer John Chambers, with the Carnegie Institution for Science in Washington DC, said the mega-asteroid that smashed into Earth, launching debris that later became the moon, occurred about 95 million years after the birth of the solar system.

"We think that the thing that hit Earth and ended up forming the moon, the lion's share of it stayed on Earth," he explained.

"A small fraction of its mass and some material from Earth was pushed off into space to form the moon. That was probably the last big event," he added.

The study, published in the journal Nature, is based on 259 computer simulations of how the solar system evolved.

The programs simulate the crashes and mergers of the small bodies until they meld into the rocky planets that exist today.

Earth's last big chuck came from a Mars-sized body that hit about 95 million years after the solar system's formation when measured by that geologic clock, the study showed.

At 99.9 per cent accurate, the study disputes some previous estimates that the moon-forming impact occurred as early as 30 million to 40 million years after the solar system's formation.

Shape Created with Sketch. China's Jade Rabbit rover sends back its first pictures from the Moon Show all 6 left Created with Sketch. right Created with Sketch. Shape Created with Sketch. China's Jade Rabbit rover sends back its first pictures from the Moon 1/6 One of the first pictures of the lunar landscape as captured by the Jade Rabbit rover. Xinhua/Photoshot Xinhua/Photoshot. 2/6 The six-wheeled Jader Rabbit rover is seent separating from the Chang'e-3 moon lander. Xinhua/Photoshot Xinhua/Photoshot. 3/6 China's first moon rover, Yutu, or Jade Rabbit, is seen separating from the Chang'e-3 moon lander at the Beijing Aerospace Control Center in Beijing, capital of China, Dec. 15, 2013. Xinhua/Photoshot Xinhua/Photoshot 4/6 This screen grab taken from a CCTV footage shows a photo of the Jade Rabbit moon rover taken by the Chang'e-3 probe lander on December 15, 2013. AFP/Getty Images AFP/Getty Images 5/6 This screen grab taken from a CCTV footage shows a photo of the Chang'e-3 probe lander taken by the Jade Rabbit moon rover on December 15, 2013. AFP/Getty Images AFP/Getty Images 6/6 A detailed model of the Jade Rabbit lunar rover is shown on display at the China International Industry Fair 2013 in Shanghai in November. AFP/Peter Parks AFP/PETER PARKS 1/6 One of the first pictures of the lunar landscape as captured by the Jade Rabbit rover. Xinhua/Photoshot Xinhua/Photoshot. 2/6 The six-wheeled Jader Rabbit rover is seent separating from the Chang'e-3 moon lander. Xinhua/Photoshot Xinhua/Photoshot. 3/6 China's first moon rover, Yutu, or Jade Rabbit, is seen separating from the Chang'e-3 moon lander at the Beijing Aerospace Control Center in Beijing, capital of China, Dec. 15, 2013. Xinhua/Photoshot Xinhua/Photoshot 4/6 This screen grab taken from a CCTV footage shows a photo of the Jade Rabbit moon rover taken by the Chang'e-3 probe lander on December 15, 2013. AFP/Getty Images AFP/Getty Images 5/6 This screen grab taken from a CCTV footage shows a photo of the Chang'e-3 probe lander taken by the Jade Rabbit moon rover on December 15, 2013. AFP/Getty Images AFP/Getty Images 6/6 A detailed model of the Jade Rabbit lunar rover is shown on display at the China International Industry Fair 2013 in Shanghai in November. AFP/Peter Parks AFP/PETER PARKS

The results also open another even bigger mystery about why some planets, like Mars, form relatively quickly, while others, like Earth and possibly Venus, take far longer.

Analysis of Martian meteorites and the computer simulations indicate Mars was finished in just a few million years.

Additional reporting by Reuters