A reinforced lunar dynamo recorded by Chang’e-6 farside basalt

Shuhui Cai (), Kaixian Qi, Saihong Yang, Jie Fang, Pingyuan Shi, Zhongshan Shen, Min Zhang, Huafeng Qin, Chi Zhang, Xiaoguang Li, Fangfang Chen, Yi Chen, Jinhua Li, Huaiyu He, Chenglong Deng, Chunlai Li, Yongxin Pan and Rixiang Zhu
Additional contact information
Shuhui Cai: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Kaixian Qi: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Saihong Yang: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Jie Fang: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Pingyuan Shi: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Zhongshan Shen: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Min Zhang: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Huafeng Qin: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Chi Zhang: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Xiaoguang Li: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Fangfang Chen: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Yi Chen: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Jinhua Li: University of Chinese Academy of Sciences
Huaiyu He: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Chenglong Deng: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Chunlai Li: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Yongxin Pan: University of Chinese Academy of Sciences
Rixiang Zhu: Chinese Academy of Sciences

Nature, 2025, vol. 643, issue 8071, 361-365

Abstract: Abstract The evolution of the lunar dynamo is essential for deciphering the deep interior structure, thermal history and surface environment of the Moon1–4. Previous palaeomagnetic investigations on samples returned from the nearside of the Moon have established the general variation of the lunar magnetic field5–7. However, limited spatial and temporal palaeomagnetic constraints leave the evolution of the lunar dynamo ambiguous. The Chang’e-6 mission returned the first farside basalts dated at about 2.8 billion years ago (Ga) (refs. 8,9), offering an opportunity to investigate a critical spatiotemporal gap in the evolution of the global lunar dynamo. Here we report palaeointensities (around 5–21 μT) recovered from the Chang’e-6 basalts, providing the first constraint on the magnetic field from the lunar farside and a critical anchor within the large gap between 3 Ga and 2 Ga. These results record a rebound of the field strength after its previous sharp decline of around 3.1 Ga, which attests to an active lunar dynamo at about 2.8 Ga in the mid-early stage and argues against the suggestion that the lunar dynamo may have remained in a low-energy state after 3 Ga until its demise. The results indicate that the lunar dynamo was probably driven by either a basal magma ocean or a precession, supplemented by other mechanisms such as core crystallization.

Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1038/s41586-024-08526-2

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