A more reduced mantle beneath the lunar South Pole–Aitken basin

Huijuan Zhang, Wei Yang (), Di Zhang, Jialong Hao, Xiaoying Liu, Honggang Zhu, Ross N. Mitchell, Lihui Jia, Yunhong Fan, Shitou Wu, Lixin Gu, Xu Tang, Heng-Ci Tian, Junling Pei, Yangting Lin, Xian-Hua Li and Fu-Yuan Wu ()
Additional contact information
Huijuan Zhang: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Wei Yang: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Di Zhang: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Jialong Hao: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Xiaoying Liu: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Honggang Zhu: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Ross N. Mitchell: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Lihui Jia: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Yunhong Fan: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Shitou Wu: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Lixin Gu: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Xu Tang: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Heng-Ci Tian: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Junling Pei: East China University of Technology
Yangting Lin: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Xian-Hua Li: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Fu-Yuan Wu: Chinese Academy of Sciences

Nature Communications, 2025, vol. 16, issue 1, 1-8

Abstract: Abstract The oxygen fugacity (fO2) of the lunar mantle is of pivotal significance in comprehending the formation and evolution of the Moon. However, the fO2 of the lunar farside mantle remains unknown due to the lack of samples returned from the farside. Here, we determine the oxygen fugacity of 23 basaltic fragments from the Chang’e-6 (CE6) soil, the first farside sample collected from the South Pole–Aitken (SPA) basin. The spinel V oxybarometer and pyroxene Eu oxybarometer yield an average fO2 of ΔIW –1.93 ± 0.58 (2σ), indicating a more reduced state compared to the nearside Apollo and Chang’e-5 (CE5) basalts, which have an average fO2 of ΔIW –0.80 ± 0.64 (2σ). Such asymmetry in oxygen fugacity of the lunar mantle can be attributed to two processes: nearside mantle oxidation by a larger amount of Fe sinking into the core triggered by asymmetric crystallisation of the lunar magma ocean, and/or farside mantle reduction caused by S2 and CO degassing during the SPA massive impact. Nevertheless, the reduced nature of the underlying mantle beneath the SPA basin reveals another aspect of lunar asymmetry.

Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-62341-5

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