Mare Basalts Research Articles

New insights into the regional and local geological context of the Luna 16 landing site

The results of our regional and local studies of the Fecunditatis basin and Mare Fecunditatis, and areas adjacent to the Luna 16 landing site suggest the following. If the Fecunditatis basin is an impact structure, which is consistent with the crustal thickness models and gravity data, it predates the Nectaris basins (∼4.17 Ga). The unusually flat topographic profile of the Fecunditatis basin can be explained by viscous relaxation of the original topography of the basin and the subsequent filling of the basin by ejecta from the Nectaris and Crisium basins. The results of our crater size-frequency measurements within the mare domain of the Fecunditatis basin yield an absolute model age (AMA) of ∼3.81 Ga. Thus, the population of all recognizable craters within Mare Fecunditatis denotes the existence of an extensive episode/episodes of resurfacing that has erased the ancient crater population accumulated after the Fecunditatis impact event but before the mare emplacement. Our determinations of AMAs of the surface of Mare Fecunditatis (∼3.45 Ga) are consistent with most radiometric age determinations from the Luna 16 samples that are clustered at ages of ∼3.5–3.4 Ga. The current Mare Fecunditatis surface is likely to represent the latter episodes of volcanism, the main phase of which was active during this time interval. Although older radiometric ages have not yet been reported, the presence of older basalts in the Luna 16 sample should not be ruled out, taking into account the likely multiple sources of its materials and the complex nature of the emplacement of lavas in Mare Fecunditatis. The thickness of mare basalts in Mare Fecunditatis are highly variable. At the regional scale, thicknesses are most likely at least ∼1.5 km, in order to be able to hide a significant number of ancient larger craters. In the areas of partly or completely flooded craters, the mare thickness increases up to ∼2–2.7 km. In the vicinity of the Luna 16 landing site, however, the thickness of the most than a few hundred meters.

A Unified Brightness Temperature Features Analysis Framework for Mapping Mare Basalt Units Using Chang’e-2 Lunar Microwave Sounder (CELMS) Data

The brightness temperature (TB) features extracted from Chang’e-2 Lunar Microwave Sounder (CELMS) data represent the passive microwave thermal emission (MTE) from the lunar regolith at different depths. However, there have been few studies assessing the importance and contribution of each TB feature for mapping mare basalt units. In this study, a unified framework of TB features analysis is proposed through a case study of Mare Fecunditatis, which is a large basalt basin on the eastern nearside of the Moon. Firstly, TB maps are generated from original CELMS data. Next, all TB features are evaluated systematically using a range of analytical approaches. The Pearson coefficient is used to compute the correlation of features and basalt classes. Two distance metrics, normalized distance and J-S divergence, are selected to measure the discrimination of basalt units by each TB feature. Their contributions to basalt classification are quantitatively evaluated by the ReliefF method and out-of-bag (OOB) importance index. Then, principal component analysis (PCA) is applied to reduce the dimension of TB features and analyze the feature space. Finally, a new geological map of Mare Fecunditatis is generated using CELMS data based on a random forest (RF) classifier. The results will be of great significance in utilizing CELMS data more widely as an additional tool to study the geological structure of the lunar basalt basin.

Lunar Procellarum KREEP Terrane (PKT) Stratigraphy and Structure with Depth: Evidence for Significantly Decreased Th Concentrations and Thermal Evolution Consequences

Dating from the lunar magma ocean solidification period, the Procellarum KREEP Terrane (PKT) occupies 16% of the surface but has a much higher thorium abundance compared to the rest of the Moon and is thus interpreted to carry 40% of the radioactive elements by volume in the form of an anomalously thick KREEP-rich layer. Subsequent research has focused on the processes responsible for PKT concentration and localization (e.g., degree-1 convection, farside impact basin effects, etc.), and the effect of PKT high-radioactivity localization on lunar thermal evolution (e.g., topography relaxation, mantle heating, late-stage mare basalt generation, etc.). Here we use a stratigraphic approach and new crustal thickness data to probe the nature of the PKT with depth. We find that most PKT characteristics can be explained by sequential impact cratering events that excavated and redistributed to the surface/near-surface a much thinner Th-rich KREEP layer at depth, implying that no anomalous conditions of PKT thickness, radioactive abundances, geodynamics, thermal effects or magma generation are likely to be required as in the previous studies.

Major Elements Concentrations in Chang’E-3 Landing Site from Active Particle-Induced X-ray Spectrometer

On 14 December 2013 (UTC), China’s Chang’E-3 (CE-3) succeeded in landing on the Moon’s surface. The CE-3 landing site is in northern Mare Imbrium and several tens of meters away from the rim of a young crater with a few hundred meters in diameter. In-situ measurements of lunar soil around the roving area were conducted from Active Particle-induced X-ray Spectrometer (APXS) onboard Yutu rover. Three relatively young lunar soil samples in the CE-3 landing site were investigated. Previous studies suggested that these samples are a new type of basalt, not discovered yet in previous missions before the CE-3 in-situ measurements. It plays an essential role in promoting the understanding of lunar volcanic history. However, their results are deviated, and thus scrutinizing the data as per our optimized model to derive a more precise result is of necessity. In this paper, we present an optimized model for data analysis based on APXS measurements to derive the major elements concentrations. The optimized model has the advantages of reliability and being independent of calibration by ground standards. The particle size effect is applied in lunar X-ray fluorescence modeling for correction, improving the accuracy in determining the elemental concentrations for the actual measurement. Our results are distinct in the correlation plots by carrying out a comparison with previous lunar regolith samples from Apollo, Luna, and Chang’E-5 missions, indicating that the CE-3 landing site is a new region apart from previous in-situ or laboratory detection prior to the CE-3 measurements. It suggests a kind of young mare basalt with unusual petrological characteristics compared with previous samples and similar geochemical properties of CE-3 landing site and western Procellarum and Imbrium (WPI), with a signature of western Procellarum.

Chronology, composition, and mineralogy of mare basalts in the junction of Oceanus Procellarum, Mare Imbrium, Mare Insularum, and Mare Vaporum

The timeline of volcanic activity is critical for constraining the thermal evolution of the Moon. The spatial extents of mare basalts, major products of lunar volcanism, have been precisely extracted from LROC (Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera) image mosaics. With the maria extents newly extracted from LROC mosaics, we found that a large area of mare basalts in the junction of Oceanus Procellarum, Mare Imbrium, Mare Insularum, and Mare Vaporum (the PIV region) has not yet been dated. This study analysed the chronology, composition, and mineralogy of the PIV region, aiming to finish the picture of basaltic volcanism in the Procellarum region, which is a key puzzle of our global geological mapping of the Moon. According to the topographical, spectral, and compositional characteristics, mare units of the PIV region are defined, and the crater size frequency distribution is measured. The primary craters with diameters >0.1 km in the PIV region are measured, and the absolute model ages of basalt units between ∼3.78 Ga and ∼1.71 Ga are derived. Most western PIV basalt units are Eratosthenian-aged, while eastern units mostly formed in the Imbrian period. The spectra of 4965 small impact craters are extracted to interpret the mineral compositions of the PIV basalt units using Chandrayaan-1 Moon Mineralogy Mapper data. Using a Modified Gaussian Model, the reflectance spectra are deconvoluted, and the obtained modal proportions of mafic minerals show low olivine and high low-Ca pyroxene abundances in the eastern PIV region, while the western region features high olivine and calcic pyroxene concentrations. Three episodes of volcanic events occurring in the PIV region are identified. The first (main) occurred at approximately 3.5 Ga (Late Imbrian), with erupted lava flows with less evolved compositions covering most of the PIV area. The peak of volcanic activity in the Eratosthenian period occurred around 2.5 Ga, where mare basalts with moderately evolved compositions and mineralogy were formed. The last major eruption occurred at approximately 1.8 Ga, forming mare basalts with highly evolved compositions.

Fe and Mg Isotope Compositions Indicate a Hybrid Mantle Source for Young Chang’E 5 Mare Basalts

The Chang’E 5 (CE-5) samples represent the youngest mare basalt ever known and provide an access into the late lunar evolution. Recent studies have revealed that CE-5 basalts are the most evolved lunar basalts, yet controversy remains over the nature of their mantle sources. Here we combine Fe and Mg isotope analyses with a comprehensive study of petrology and mineralogy on two CE-5 basalt clasts. These two clasts have a very low Mg# (∼29) and show similar Mg isotope compositions to Apollo low-Ti mare basalts as well as intermediate TiO2 and Fe isotope compositions between low-Ti and high-Ti mare basalts. Fractional crystallization or evaporation during impact cannot produce such geochemical signatures that otherwise indicate a hybrid mantle source that incorporates both early- and late-stage lunar magma ocean (LMO) cumulates. Such a hybrid mantle source would be also compatible with the KREEP-like Rare Earth Elements pattern of CE-5 basalts. Overall, our new Fe–Mg isotope data highlight the role of late LMO cumulate for the generation of young lunar volcanism.

A new compositional, mineralogical and chronological study of the Leibnitz crater within the SPA basin

Leibnitz is an impact crater 237 ​km in diameter located on the lunar farside within the South Pole–Aitken (SPA) basin. It shares much of its southern rim with the Von Kármán crater (186 ​km in diameter), which is currently the focus of in situ exploration by the Yutu-2 rover, part of the Chang'e−4 mission. This complementary study analyzes Leibnitz's surface materials mineralogy and age using remote sensing data. We focused on the spectral information from 95 fresh craters within Leibnitz to minimize the effects of weathering on the exposed materials. Subsequently, we employed the Modified Gaussian Model to derive a distribution map for the high to low Ca pyroxene ratio values. Finally, we derived absolute model age estimations of the mare basalts using the lunar crater chronology method. A new geologic map of the Leibnitz crater summarizes the results of this study. The results show that the interiors of Von Kármán and Leibnitz share a degree of similarity in mineral composition, with strong absorption features around the 1 ​μm and 2 ​μm bandcenters, due to the spectral dominance of mafic minerals. The ejecta from the adjacent Finsen crater have higher Ca/Fe and HCP/LCP ratios than the exposed materials of the Leibnitz crater. This study also finds evidence to support an older age of formation of the crater than age estimates to date from previous studies of the Leibnitz crater.

Regolith mineral detection and abundance estimation based on the LMS spectral data of Chang’E-5 lander

<p indent="0mm">Determining the mineral components of the lunar regolith is key to understanding the Moon’s genesis and evolution, and it is one of the important scientific objectives of the Chang’E-5 Mission. The <italic>in-situ</italic> spectra collected by the lunar mineralogical spectrometer (LMS) of Chang’E-5 provide valuable data for interpreting the mineral composition of the landing site. However, little work has been performed to analyze the LMS data, and the traditional lunar mineral detection method based on the radiation transfer model cannot simultaneously obtain information on the mineral end-member, abundance, and particle size. To achieve the multiple goals, we propose a sparse unmixing method based on the spectral library of various particle-size minerals. The mineral detection problem is transformed into a sparse optimization problem and solved by the alternating direction algorithm. We have analyzed eight sets of LMS reflectance spectra and found that the lunar soil in the sampling area is composed of agglutinates and glass (49.36%), pyroxene (14.08%), plagioclase (18.58%), ilmenite (16.11%), and olivine (1.86%). The detected mineral composition is consistent with the composition of young lunar mare basalts. In addition, 79.83% of the detected minerals have a small particle size of less than 75 μm, of which the average particle size of olivine, plagioclase, pyroxene, ilmenite, agglutinates, and glass is 48, 205, 59, 37.4, and 9.7 μm, respectively. Differences in mineral particle size suggest that the effects of space weathering on the lunar surface vary by the component minerals. Moreover, the LMS data provide <italic>in-situ</italic> spectral evidence of water existence on the lunar surface, i.e., the spectral absorption at <sc>2850 nm.</sc> We estimate the water content of the sampling area using the effective single-particle absorption-thickness (ESPAT) value and the temperature derived from an improved lunar thermal model that has been cross-validated with the temperature records of several thermal sensors on the Chang’E-5 lander. The result shows that rocks are more hydrous than the regolith at the Cheng’E-5 landing site. The water content of the rock is as high as <sc>201 ppm,</sc> while the average water content of the sampling area is <sc>67 ppm.</sc>

Chang&amp;rsquo;E-5 samples&amp;mdash;New &amp;ldquo;ground truth&amp;rdquo; for the quantitative inversion of lunar remote sensing

<p indent="0mm">The Chang’E-5 (CE-5) mission successfully returned <sc>1731 g</sc> of lunar soil samples from the northeast of the Oceanus Procellarum. The newly returned lunar soil can provide a new ground truth for the quantitative inversion of lunar remote sensing data. In this study, the mineral and chemical compositions (FeO, TiO₂, Th) of the landing region were obtained from the remote sensing data and compared with the laboratory analysis results of the CE-5 lunar soil samples. The differences between them (especially the olivine content) indicate that there is still room for improvement in the methods for retrieving the elemental and mineral abundances using remote sensing data. Through a systematic comparative analysis, we discovered that: (1) the geochemical characteristics of high FeO, medium TiO₂, and abundant Th in the CE-5 lunar soil are significantly different from the existing Apollo lunar soil, which can provide unique ground truth for remote sensing research; (2) The CE-5 lunar soil represents mature lunar soil developed on the young basalt unit on the moon, with a small proportion of distantly sourced ejecta, representing the mare basalt composition characteristics of the landing region; (3) The CE-5 lunar soil is very fine, which meets the sample standard <sc>(&lt;45 μm)</sc> of the Lunar Soil Characterization Consortium for providing ground truth. Notably, the CE-5 landing region also exhibits unique characteristics: (1) it is located in the mid-latitude region on the western hemisphere of the moon, different from the low-latitude region where the United States and the Soviet Union sample return missions landed; (2) it is located on the late-stage lunar basalt unit; it is different from the existing spectral calibration area. Therefore, the construction of the CE-5 landing area as a new remote sensing calibration site based on the measured data of its lunar soil can significantly expand the geographical scope and global representation of the lunar calibration sites. Based on the results of the remote sensing and sample studies, we delineate the calibration area in the unit where the CE-5 landing site is located (Em4), thus providing a reference for establishing a remote sensing calibration area in the future.

High alumina basalts identification and their feature analysis in Mare Fecunditatis

High alumina (HA) mare basalts play unique roles in understanding the heterogeneity of lunar mantle. Their presence was confirmed by the Apollo and Luna samples, and their remote sensing identification was implemented using HA sample FeO, TiO2 and Th concentration constraints. This study selected the surfaces with ~0.5% rock abundance as windows into HA basalts identification. The lithology of these rock pixels was first classified based on thorium maps from the Lunar Prospector and major element oxide products from Diviner data onboard the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO). Then, the LRO Diviner Al2O3 (~11 wt%) concentration constraint was applied in the mare basalt rock pixels across the Moon. The mare-highland mixtures were distinguished from HA basalt rocks based on the positive linear relationships between Al2O3 and Mg# in the adjacent pixels for four impact vector directions away from each candidate HA pixel. These HA basalts rock pixels identified by this study indicate that HA basalts are concentrated locally in South Pole-Aitken (SPA) basin, Schiller-Schickard region and 13 maria such as southern and northern Oceanus Procellarum, central Humorum, Tranquillitatis, Fecunditatis and Serenitatis, northern Imbrium and southern Nubium, but are seldom found in Mare Moscoviense and Orientale regions on the farside. Detailed investigations in Mare Fecunditatis found that fifteen HA basalt units or patches could be confidently identified. These HA basalts have the total area and volume of <77,658 km2 and <54,301 km3, and the maximum depth and thickness of 1147 m and 1062 m respectively. In addition, analyses of the HA rocks indicated that the HA basalts are discontinuous and have variable thicknesses.

Timing and Origin of Compressional Tectonism in Mare Tranquillitatis

AbstractThe lithosphere of the Moon has been deformed by tectonic processes for at least 4 billion years, resulting in a variety of tectonic surface features. Extensional large lunar graben formed during an early phase of net thermal expansion before 3.6 Ga. With the emplacement of mare basalts at ∼3.9–4.0 Ga, faulting and folding of the mare basalts initiated, and wrinkle ridges formed. Lunar wrinkle ridges exclusively occur within the lunar Maria and are thought to be the result of superisostatic loading by dense mare basalts. Since 3.6 Ga, the Moon is in a thermal state of net contraction, which led to the global formation of small lobate thrust faults called lobate scarps. Hence, lunar tectonism recorded changes in the global and regional stress fields and is therefore an important archive for the thermal evolution of the Moon. Here, we mapped tectonic features in the non‐mascon basin Mare Tranquillitatis and classified these features according to their respective erosional states. This classification aims to provide new insights into the timing of lunar tectonism and the associated stress fields. We found a wide time range of tectonic activity, ranging from ancient to recent (3.8 Ga to &lt;50 Ma). Early wrinkle ridge formation seems to be closely related to subsidence and flexure. For the recent and ongoing growth of wrinkle ridges and lobate scarps, global contraction with a combination of recession stresses and diurnal tidal stresses, as well as with a combination of South Pole‐Aitken ejecta loading and true polar wander are likely.

Mature lunar soils from Fe-rich and young mare basalts in the Chang’e-5 regolith samples

Space weathering on airless bodies produces metallic iron (Fe0) particles in the rims of mineral grains, which affect visible and near-infrared spectra and complicate the identification of surface materials. The Chang’e-5 mission provides an opportunity to couple information gained from its returned samples with in situ observations and orbital monitoring to gain insight on the details of space weathering on extremely Fe-rich basalts. By putting together all these data, we could extract a soil maturity index (Is/FeO) at the Chang’e-5 landing site of ~66 ± 3.2, indicative of a formation age for the Xu Guangqi crater, whose ejecta dominate the site, of 240–300 Myr ago. In addition, abundant large Fe0 particles were found in the sample, indicating that both the inherited Fe0 particles from late-stage mare basalts and the dense clustering of oversaturated Fe0 in extremely FeO-rich (>17 wt%) basalts contribute to observed Fe0 abundances. We suggest that space weathering of Fe-richer basalt generates Fe0 particles with a larger grain size and faster production rate.

A changing thermal regime revealed from shallow to deep basalt source melting in the Moon.

Sample return missions have provided the basis for understanding the thermochemical evolution of the Moon. Mare basalt sources are likely to have originated from partial melting of lunar magma ocean cumulates after solidification from an initially molten state. Some of the Apollo mare basalts show evidence for the presence in their source of a late-stage radiogenic heat-producing incompatible element-rich layer, known for its enrichment in potassium, rare-earth elements, and phosphorus (KREEP). Here we show the most depleted lunar meteorite, Asuka-881757, and associated mare basalts, represent ancient (~3.9 Ga) partial melts of KREEP-free Fe-rich mantle. Petrological modeling demonstrates that these basalts were generated at lower temperatures and shallower depths than typical Apollo mare basalts. Calculated mantle potential temperatures of these rocks suggest a relatively cooler mantle source and lower surface heat flow than those associated with later-erupted mare basalts, suggesting a fundamental shift in melting regime in the Moon from ~3.9 to ~3.3 Ga.

The potential cryptomaria in Balmer-Kapteyn region revealed by GRAIL data

Cryptomare, buried basalt deposits by impact ejecta, is a significant component of the lunar mare. Current research has focused on searching for cryptomaria through dark halo craters (DHCs), but there are limitations to this approach, while the cryptomaria may actually cover a much wider area. In this research, we invert the three-dimensional density structure in the Balmer-Kapteyn region (centered on 68 °E, 18 °S) using GRAIL data based on the density difference between basaltic mare and feldspathic highland, to analyze the cryptomaria in this region. The results show that the volume of the high density material is about 2.3 × 10 4 km 3 and the depth of the bottom of the material is 8 km in our inversion target area. Our inversion results combined with the distribution of DHCs, revealing what may be the unexposed cryptomaria. • He GRAIL data were applied to study the cryptomare beneath the Balmer Kapteyn region. • The gravity-based inversion method can detect potential cryptomaria that were not visible in remote sensing images. • The result showed that the depth of hidden mare basalts might be ranged to ∼8 km and the total volume was about 2.3 × 10 4 km 3 under the B–K region.

Mapping of Compositional Diversity and Chronological Ages of Lunar Farside Multiring Mare Moscoviense Basin: Implications to the Middle Imbrian Mare Basalts

The Mare Moscoviense is an astonishing rare flatland multi-ring basin and one of the recognizable mare regions on the Moon’s farside. The mineralogical, chronological, topographical and morphological studies of the maria surface of the Moon provide a primary understanding of the origin and evolution of the mare provinces. In this study, the Chandrayaan-1 M3 data have been employed to prepare optical maturity index, FeO and TiO2 concentration, and standard band ratio map to detect the mafic indexes like olivine and pyroxene minerals. The crater size frequency distribution method has been applied to LROC WAC data to obtain the absolute model ages of the Moscoviense basin. The four geological unit ages were observed as 3.57 Ga (U-2), 3.65 Ga (U-1), 3.8 Ga (U-3) and 3.92 Ga (U-4), which could have been formed between the Imbrian and Nectarian epochs. The M3 imaging and reflectance spectral parameters were used to reveal the minerals like pyroxene, olivine, ilmenite, plagioclase, orthopyroxene-olivine-spinel lithology, and olivine-pyroxene mixtures present in the gabbroic basalt, anorthositic and massive ilmenite rocks, and validated with the existing database. The results show that the Moscoviense basin is dominated by intermediate TiO2 basalts that derived from olivine-ilmenite-pyroxene cumulate depths ranging from 200 to 500 km between 3.5 Ga and 3.6 Ga.

Petrogenesis of Chang’E-5 mare basalts: Clues from the trace elements in plagioclase

AbstractThis study focuses on using the chemical compositions of plagioclase to further investigate the petrogenesis of Chang’E-5 young mare basalts and constrain its parental melt composition. Together with previously published data, our results show that the plagioclase in mare basalts overall displays large variations in major and trace element concentrations. Inversion of the plagioclase data indicates that the melt compositions parental to Chang’E-5 basalts have high rare earth elements (REE) concentrations similar to the high-K KREEP rocks (potassium, rare earth elements, and phosphorus). Such a signature is unlikely to result from the assimilation of KREEP components, because the estimated melt Sr shows positive correlations with other trace elements (e.g., Ba, La), which are far from the KREEP end-member. Instead, the nearly parallel REE distributions and a high degree of trace element enrichment in plagioclase indicate an extensive fractional crystallization process. Furthermore, the estimated melt REE concentrations from plagioclase are slightly higher than those from clinopyroxene, consistent with its relatively later crystallization. Using the Ti partition coefficient between plagioclase and melt, we estimated the parental melt TiO2 content from the earliest crystallized plagioclase to be ~3.3 ± 0.4 wt%, thus providing robust evidence for a low-Ti and non-KREEP origin for the Chang’E-5 young basalts in the Procellarum KREEP terrane.

A Global Analysis of Crater Depth/Diameter Ratios on the Moon

AbstractOn the Moon, the old anorthositic highland rocks and younger basaltic mare units show distinguishable differences in appearance. The craters on the lunar highlands and maria also show variation in morphological characteristics. We analyzed the crater morphologies on a global scale, based on our new global catalog of lunar impact craters (≥1 km in diameter) with morphological information for each crater. We find that there is a global power‐law relationship with an offset term between crater depth‐to‐diameter ratios and crater densities. Small craters (less than ∼4 km in diameter) on the lunar maria are found to be deeper than those on the highlands, indicating differences in target properties and crater degradations. Furthermore, the depths of the deepest simple craters identified on the lunar maria and the highlands provide references that the mare basalts and highland upper megaregolith have thicknesses of ∼2.3 and ∼3.3 km, respectively.

Study of the Buried Basin C-H, Based on the Multi-Source Remote Sensing Data

We use multi-source remote sensing data to identify the details of a mascon south-east of the lunar Copernicus crater. Studies of the topography, gravity, geochronology and mineral are combined to prove that the mascon is a buried peak-ring basin with diameters of about 130 km and 260 km. The underground structure is covered by 890 m thick mare basalts, as determined by analyzing the spectral features of the impact crater, Copernicus H. The determination of the crater size–frequency distribution (CSFD) suggests that the impact that created the C-H basin occurred earlier than 3.9 Ga. Then, a Hawaiian-style eruption in the late Imbrian period formed the Sinus Aestuum-I dark mantling deposit (DMD). Soon, mare basalts covered the basin several times from 3.8 Ga. Finally, the ejecta from the Copernicus impact event at about 800 Ma, and the weathering processes caused the disappearance of the C-H basin rim from the lunar surface.

Spectral interpretation of late-stage mare basalt mineralogy unveiled by Chang’E-5 samples

The western maria of lunar near-side are widely covered with late-stage mare basalts. Due to the lack of returned samples, the mineralogy of the late-stage basalts was previously speculated as having high abundance of olivine based on remote sensing observation. However, here we show that Chang’E-5 (CE-5) lunar soil samples, the ground truth from past unsampled lunar late-stage mare region, give a different interpretation. Our laboratory spectroscopic and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analyses of the CE-5 soil samples demonstrate that their special spectral signatures are representative of iron-rich high-Ca pyroxene rather than olivine. Considering the spectral and compositional similarities between CE-5 soil samples and lunar late-stage basalts, the mineralogy and petrology of CE-5 samples may be able to be generalized to entire lunar late-stage basalts. Our study would provide a constraint on the thermal evolution of the Moon, especially the young lunar volcanism.

Understanding the mineralogy and geochemistry of Chang'E-5 soil and implications for its geological significances

Chang'E-5 (CE-5) mission returned 1731 g of lunar soil from northeastern Oceanus Procellarum. This study begins by comparing the mineralogy and geochemistry of CE-5 soil with Apollo and Luna soils. CE-5 soil shares similar mineral components with Apollo mare soils. Geochemically, CE-5 soil is characterized by high-FeO, intermediate-TiO2, and elevated incompatible elements. The new returned CE-5 soil represents a unique type of mare soil that expands the diversity of returned lunar samples. Its bulk chemical compositions suggest that CE-5 soil consists of pulverized local mare basalt. Nonmare materials are thought to be negligible while meteoroid contamination is <1%. CE-5 soil provides an additional iron-rich basaltic end-member composition and extends the chemical ranges of the existing calibration soils for lunar remote sensing. CE-5 soil, together with the landing site, can serve as new ground truth both in mineralogy and geochemistry. Based on bulk chemical data of CE-5 soils and pyroxene compositions of CE-5 mare basalt clasts, we infer that CE-5 mare basalt has a fractional crystallization history similar to the Apollo high-Ti basalts. These CE-5 mare basalt clasts analyzed in recent studies, possibly derive from a single lava flow that experienced strong fractional crystallization.