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Scientists Probe Mystery of Moon’s Far Side: New Research Suggests Drier Interior
Lunar Far Side Mystery Deepens: The far side of the Moon, perpetually turned away from Earth, has long puzzled scientists with its distinct characteristics compared to the near side. Characterized by a greater abundance of impact craters, a thicker crust, and fewer maria – the smooth plains formed by ancient volcanic flows – the two hemispheres of the Moon exhibit striking differences. Recent findings, stemming from analysis of lunar samples, propose that these disparities extend beneath the surface, suggesting a potentially drier interior on the Moon’s far side.
Contrasting Hemispheres: Surface Variations Spark Deeper Questions
Researchers indicate that the variances between the lunar near and far sides may not be merely superficial. Analysis of a lunar sample acquired in the past year by Chinese scientists suggests that the far side’s internal composition might be significantly drier than its counterpart. This groundbreaking discovery, published in Nature, offers potentially crucial insights into the formation and evolution of our celestial neighbor over billions of years.
Sen Hu, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing and a co-author of the study, noted the consistency between the perceived differences in water content and the contrasting surface features of the Moon’s hemispheres. “It’s quite intriguing,” stated Hu, highlighting the potential link between surface appearance and internal composition.
Unveiling Lunar Water: From “Bone Dry” to Hydrated Hints
Until the 1990s, prevailing scientific thought considered the Moon to be completely devoid of water. However, subsequent investigations revealed indications of surface water, confirmed in 2009 when NASA intentionally impacted a rocket stage into the lunar south pole, liberating subsurface water ice.
Investigating the Lunar Mantle: Chang’e-6 Mission Samples Provide Clues
Missions to the Moon, including the recent Chinese endeavors, aim to determine the quantity of water residing deep within the lunar interior. Studying the Moon’s internal composition provides a less weathered perspective on its past, as it remains shielded from surface alteration processes.
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Upon receiving the Chang’e-6 samples, researchers focused on examining mare basalts – solidified lava grains originating from the lunar mantle. These ancient basalts, dating back as far as 2.8 billion years, contained olivine crystals. Olivine, formed during the cooling of ancient lunar magma, acts as a time capsule, preserving information about the mantle’s composition in the Moon’s early history.
Hydrogen in Olivine: Measuring Ancient Water Content
By measuring the amount of hydrogen trapped within the olivine crystals, scientists were able to estimate the water concentration present in the lunar mantle billions of years ago. The analysis indicated a water content range of approximately 1 to 1.5 grams per million grams of lunar rock.
Near Side Samples: A Stark Contrast in Water Levels
Previous analyses of samples obtained from the Moon’s near side by the United States, the Soviet Union, and more recently China, revealed significantly higher water content – up to 200 times wetter than the far side sample suggests.
Far Side Dryness: A Potential Hemispheric Disparity
The substantial variation in reported water content between near side and far side lunar samples implies a potentially drier overall composition for the hemisphere hidden from Earth, according to Dr. Hu.
Expert Perspectives: Intriguing Results Require Further Study
Shuai Li, a planetary geologist specializing in lunar water at the University of Hawaii at Manoa, described the findings as “very interesting.” However, Li, who was not involved in the study, cautioned that conclusions drawn from a single sample must be considered preliminary.
“It’s hard to definitively state whether the far side is drier than the near side,” Dr. Li commented, emphasizing the need for additional data.
Hypotheses for Hemispheric Differences: Impact Events and Mantle Variations
The Chang’e-6 research team proposed potential explanations for the apparent differences in internal composition. One hypothesis suggests that the massive impact event responsible for creating the South Pole-Aitken basin could have ejected substantial amounts of water and other volatile elements towards the Moon’s near side, consequently depleting the far side of water.
Another theory posits that the basalts analyzed from the Chang’e-6 sample originated from a deeper and inherently drier region within the lunar mantle.
Mahesh Anand, a planetary scientist at the Open University in England, who contributed to estimating lunar interior water content from China’s Chang’e-5 near side samples, considered the deeper mantle origin theory “a little bit more realistic.”
Dr. Anand also commended the meticulous approach of the researchers, who painstakingly selected hundreds of minute particles, each smaller than a sixteenth of an inch, from the Chang’e-6 sample to accurately gauge water abundance.
“The capacity to perform such detailed analysis is truly painstaking, demanding considerable expertise and careful methodology,” he remarked.
Future Missions: Seeking a Comprehensive Lunar Hydration Map
Future lunar missions tasked with collecting samples from diverse locations across the far side will be crucial in determining whether the apparent dryness extends uniformly throughout the hemisphere, or if water content fluctuates across different regions. These forthcoming analyses will refine our understanding of the Moon’s internal water distribution and its implications for lunar evolution.