China's rover finds traces of never-before-seen basalt on the moon

Multimedia

31-12-2022, 21:51

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INA – BAGHDAD

Scientists have been continuously working to analyze samples of rock and dirt brought back by China's Chang'e 5 lunar rover, and the latest results point to new kinds of geology from regions of the Moon that are yet to be discovered and explored.

Seven different types of rock were identified among 1.731 kilograms (3.816 pounds) of 2 billion-year-old regolith – the loose, crumbly dirt and rubble on the Moon's surface. One of the rocks is a completely new type of lunar basalt, created at a time when the Moon was still volcanically active.

This regolith is the youngest to be brought back from the Moon so far, giving experts a look into a different time period than other samples, and helping them chart a tumultuous period of our close neighbor's history.

The seven types of rock listed in the study are thought to have reached their current landing site from somewhere else.