Abstract
The Moon has a magmatic and thermal history that is distinct from that of the terrestrial planets1. Radioisotope dating of lunar samples suggests that most lunar basaltic magmatism ceased by around 2.9–2.8 billion years ago (Ga)2,3, although younger basalts between 3 Ga and 1 Ga have been suggested by crater-counting chronology, which has large uncertainties owing to the lack of returned samples for calibration4,5. Here we report a precise lead–lead age of 2,030 ± 4 million years ago for basalt clasts returned by the Chang’e-5 mission, and a 238U/204Pb ratio (µ value)6 of about 680 for a source that evolved through two stages of differentiation. This is the youngest crystallization age reported so far for lunar basalts by radiometric dating, extending the duration of lunar volcanism by approximately 800–900 million years. The µ value of the Chang’e-5 basalt mantle source is within the range of low-titanium and high-titanium basalts from Apollo sites (µ value of about 300–1,000), but notably lower than those of potassium, rare-earth elements and phosphorus (KREEP) and high-aluminium basalts7 (µ value of about 2,600–3,700), indicating that the Chang’e-5 basalts were produced by melting of a KREEP-poor source. This age provides a pivotal calibration point for crater-counting chronology in the inner Solar System and provides insight on the volcanic and thermal history of the Moon.
Highlights
Precise and accurate age determination of these young mare basalts is crucial for unravelling the timing and duration of lunar volcanism and for investigating late-stage basaltic petrogenesis and the melting of lunar mantle sources that are relevant to the thermal and chemical evolution of the Moon
Radioisotope dating of lunar samples suggests that most lunar basaltic magmatism ceased by around 2.9–2.8 billion years ago (Ga)[2,3], younger basalts between 3 Ga and 1 Ga have been suggested by crater-counting chronology, which has large uncertainties owing to the lack of returned samples for calibration[4,5]
The uranium (U)–lead (Pb) isotopic compositions of various mineral phases in Chang’e-5 basalt clasts were determined using a CAMECA IMS 1280HR secondary ion mass spectrometer (SIMS)
Summary
Qiu-Li Li1,6, Qin Zhou[2,6], Yu Liu[1], Zhiyong Xiao[3], Yangting Lin[4], Jin-Hua Li4, Hong-Xia Ma1, Guo-Qiang Tang[1], Shun Guo[1], Xu Tang[4], Jiang-Yan Yuan[1], Jiao Li1, Fu-Yuan Wu1, Ziyuan Ouyang[5], Chunlai Li2 ✉ & Xian-Hua Li1 ✉. The μ value of the Chang’e-5 basalt mantle source is within the range of low-titanium and high-titanium basalts from Apollo sites (μ value of about 300–1,000), but notably lower than those of potassium, rare-earth elements and phosphorus (KREEP) and high-aluminium basalts[7] (μ value of about 2,600–3,700), indicating that the Chang’e-5 basalts were produced by melting of a KREEP-poor source This age provides a pivotal calibration point for crater-counting chronology in the inner Solar System and provides insight on the volcanic and thermal history of the Moon. Radioisotope age studies of basaltic samples returned by the Apollo and Luna missions and lunar meteorites have revealed that basaltic magmatism on the Moon occurred between around 4.4 billion years ago (Ga)
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