Look: China's Chang-E reveals ancient volcanoes on the Moon

Never a dull day by Jennifer Walter Updated: Feb. 20, 2024 Originally Published: Sep. 29, 2021 Getty Images/Getty Images News/Getty Images

VCG/Visual China Group/Getty Images In December 2020 , China’s Chang-E 5 lander brought the first Moon samples back to Earth in 40 years.

Now, researchers are analyzing the Moon samples, and getting a glimpse into its past full of volcanic eruptions and asteroid impacts. In September 2021, researchers from China, the USA, and Germany presented an analysis of the Chang-E 5 samples at the annual Europlanet Science Congress. Giphy

Giphy Two kilograms of Moon materials were extracted from an area called Oceanus Procellarum, above and below the lunar surface. It’s a region known for ancient volcanic activity, though it’s younger than other parts of the Moon.

Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group/Getty Images Mare basalts, materials that dominates dormant volcanic regions, made up the majority of the Chang-E 5 sample that was analyzed.

Dark lunar mare patches, which form from ancient volcanic eruptions, span the region where Chang-E 5 collected lunar rocks and dust.

Giphy But the researchers report that 10 percent of the sample they studied was not a mare basalt. That means they were probably formed from other events on the Moon.

Shutterstock One peculiar find was a glassy, bead-like material that likely came from extinct volcanic vents located between 99 and 140 miles from the Chang-E landing site. This material was also discovered in samples brought back by the Apollo mission.

nothingisfunny via Giphy The researchers say these beads likely hint at fountain-like volcanic explosions on the Moon that took place billions of years ago.

Devon Concepts / 500px/500px/Getty Images The researchers also found some materials that likely originated from craters on other parts of the moon.

The Moon has taken numerous hits from asteroids — hence the presence of craters. Those explosions likely scattered materials across the satellite’s surface.

The dispersion of fragments indicates that materials could have been scattered from more than 800 miles away.

A. L. Crego via Giphy The Chang-E 5 samples provide more evidence that the Moon’s past was quite tumultuous — one that still leaves researchers with many questions.

Look: China's Chang-E reveals ancient volcanoes on the Moon

Dark lunar mare patches, which form from ancient volcanic eruptions, span the region where Chang-E 5 collected lunar rocks and dust.

The Moon has taken numerous hits from asteroids — hence the presence of craters. Those explosions likely scattered materials across the satellite’s surface.

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