Chang’E-4 initial spectroscopic identification of lunar far-side mantle-derived materials

Chunlai Li (), Dawei Liu, Bin Liu, Xin Ren (), Jianjun Liu (), Zhiping He, Wei Zuo, Xingguo Zeng, Rui Xu, Xu Tan, Xiaoxia Zhang, Wangli Chen, Rong Shu, Weibin Wen, Yan Su, Hongbo Zhang and Ziyuan Ouyang
Additional contact information
Chunlai Li: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Dawei Liu: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Bin Liu: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Xin Ren: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Jianjun Liu: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Zhiping He: The Chinese Academy of Sciences
Wei Zuo: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Xingguo Zeng: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Rui Xu: The Chinese Academy of Sciences
Xu Tan: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Xiaoxia Zhang: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Wangli Chen: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Rong Shu: The Chinese Academy of Sciences
Weibin Wen: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Yan Su: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Hongbo Zhang: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Ziyuan Ouyang: Chinese Academy of Sciences

Nature, 2019, vol. 569, issue 7756, 378-382

Abstract: Abstract Over 60 years of spacecraft exploration has revealed that the Earth’s Moon is characterized by a lunar crust1 dominated by the mineral plagioclase, overlying a more mafic (richer in iron and magnesium) mantle of uncertain composition. Both crust and mantle formed during the earliest stages of lunar evolution when late-stage accretional energy caused a molten rock (magma) ocean, flotation of the light plagioclase, sinking of the denser iron-rich minerals, such as olivine and pyroxene, and eventually solidification2. Very large impact craters can potentially penetrate through the crust and sample the lunar mantle. The largest of these craters is the approximately 2,500-kilometre-diameter South Pole-Aitken (SPA) basin3 on the lunar far side. Evidence obtained from orbiting spacecraft shows that the floor of the SPA basin is rich in mafic minerals4, but their mantle origin is controversial and their in situ geologic settings are poorly known. China’s Chang’E-4 lunar far-side lander recently touched down in the Von Kármán crater5,6 to explore the floor of the huge SPA basin and deployed its rover, Yutu-2. Here we report on the initial spectral observations of the Visible and Near Infrared Spectrometer (VNIS)7 onboard Yutu-2, which we interpret to represent the presence of low-calcium (ortho)pyroxene and olivine, materials that may originate from the lunar mantle. Geological context6 suggests that these materials were excavated from below the SPA floor by the nearby 72-km-diameter Finsen impact crater event, and transported to the landing site. Continued exploration by Yutu-2 will target these materials on the floor of the Von Kármán crater to understand their geologic context, origin and abundance, and to assess the possibility of sample-return scenarios.

Date: 2019
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DOI: 10.1038/s41586-019-1189-0

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