FT-IR/PAS Studies of Lunar Regolith Samples

Abstract

The formation of regolith and soil on airless planetary bodies, such as Moon, asteroids, is the result of processes virtually nonexistent on Earth. The physical and chemical changes that occur to the materials at the surfaces of such airless bodies are collectively known as “space weathering” and are mainly caused by impacts of meteorites, micrometeorites, galactic and solar-wind particles, in the deep vacuum of space [1]. Between 1969 and 1972 six Apollo missions brought back 382 kilograms (the majority was delivered by Apollo 15, 16 and 17 missions) of lunar rocks, core samples, pebbles, sand, and dust from the lunar surface. The six space flights returned 2200 separate samples from six different exploration sites on the Moon [2]. The Apollo samples are handled and stored either under vacuum or in clean dry nitrogen gas (Fig. 1) at the lunar sample building of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Johnson Space Center. Lunar soil and rock samples of the Apollo missions have been already examined in detail [2–4]. Planning new missions and the establishment of a manned ∗corresponding author; e-mail: ryczkows@hermes.umcs.lublin.pl