For any guests who are interested, the basic idea I present can also explain the laser range findings of the moon moving AWAY from the earth by around 3cm/year:
Billy T; would it be easier to discuss an imaginary, alternative universe much like ours, but which is slightly different? You're right, of course, with everything you say about the mechanics of our solar system. That isn't in dispute. In this different solar system, if the central core of a moon was composed of matter which experienced a greater acceleration than the rest of the body, could this not cause tidal friction and so slow the moon's spin and therefore move it to a higher orbit? Just talking about an imaginary universe.