A new analysis of materials collected by China’s Chang’e 5 mission from the Moon has confirmed a new source of life, flowing from an unexpected place: the Sun.
According to Science Alert, a team of scientists led by geochemists Yuchen Xu and Heng-Ci Tian from the Chinese Academy of Sciences discovered unique chemical substances in 17 sand samples obtained from the Oceanus Procellarum region (Latin for “Ocean of Storms”) on the Moon.
These materials differ from samples collected at lower latitudes by other American and Russian spacecraft, such as Apollo and Luna. The samples from Chang’e 5 were taken from a mid-latitude area, specifically from the youngest volcanic basalt rocks on the Moon.
A solar eclipse – (Photo: SCIENCE).
Using Raman spectroscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, they studied the chemical composition of these particles and found a very high hydrogen ratio, along with a very low deuterium/hydrogen isotope ratio. These ratios match those found in solar wind.
This indicates that water on the Moon, in addition to what originated from primordial Earth material before the two celestial bodies separated or from asteroids and comets that impacted it, is also contributed by the Sun.
This results from the bombardment of hydrogen ions from solar wind striking the Moon’s surface, interacting with oxides and minerals, and bonding with oxygen ejected by the impact. As a result, the “Ocean of Storms” in this mid-latitude area is extremely rich in mineral-laden regolith.
A laboratory simulation of this process has demonstrated ancient impacts and confirmed that the Moon is fully capable of retaining this precious water resource.
This water source is an invaluable treasure for space agencies worldwide, as it will provide sustenance and fuel for future missions, including lunar bases that many space agencies have planned.
The discovery also contributes to understanding how water, the “cradle of life”, reaches celestial bodies in the universe. Previous studies have suggested that Earth’s water-rich satellites may have once given rise to life but went extinct.
The new research has just been published in the scientific journal PNAS.
