Scientists have used records from the first probe of its kind to create a new map of the moon that reveals structures hidden deep beneath the moon’s surface.
background: In 2019, China made history by becoming the first country to soft-land a rover on the far side of the Moon, providing the first close-up view of the Moon’s more rugged hemisphere.
Although the mission was expected to last only a year, the lander and its probes (Chang’e 4 and Yutu 2, respectively) are still on track, recording new data for future analysis. We are collecting lunar samples in preparation for
New lunar map reveals first 1,000 feet under the moon.
what’s new? In 2020, researchers used recordings from Yutu-2’s lunar penetrating radar (LPR), a device that sends radio signals to the moon and records echoes back, map First 130 feet from the surface of the Moon.
Now, an international team led by researchers at the Institute for Planetary Science in Arizona is using Yutu-2’s LPR recordings to create New lunar map revealing first moon 1,000 feet A region below the surface of the Moon, near the South Pole.
discovery: Lead study author Jianqing Feng told live science The researchers found evidence of a crater in the upper 130 feet of the moon, as well as layers of dust and crushed rock thought to have erupted during the impact.
Further down, the new lunar map depicts five layers of volcanic rock. They likely formed billions of years ago, researchers say, when asteroids and comets crashed into the moon’s surface and cracked open, causing volcanic eruptions.
“[The Moon] It gradually cooled down and the steam disappeared. ”
Feng Jianqing
The fact that the near-surface layer was thinner than the layers below it suggests that less lava was expelled during recent eruptions.
“[The Moon] The later stages of the volcano were slowly cooling and running out of steam,” Feng told Live Science. “The energy has waned over time.”
Why it matters: Experts believe that the moon has been orbiting our planet since shortly after it formed, and the more we learn about its history, the better our understanding of what made our planet what it is today. I think it will deepen.
That information could help find other planets like ours, including planets that could be habitable.
this article Originally published by sister site Freethink.