Scientists can now study exotic samples from the Moon’s farside brought to Earth by China
China has opened up the first round of applications for scientists to study the first ever samples from our Moon’s farside, which were picked up in June this year by China’s Chang’e 6 mission and subsequently brought to Earth. Relatedly, their national space agency CNSA also recently released lander instrument data — specifically from the landing & panoramic cameras, the mineral spectrometer, and the ground penetrating radar.
The 1.93 kilograms of Chang’e 6 lunar soil and rocks sampled from the large Apollo crater are scientifically even more valuable than the nearside Chang’e 5 samples since scientists expect it will help solve some long-standing mysteries about the origin, evolution, and volcanic past of Luna. Most crucially, the Chang’e 6 samples will help scientists understand why our Moon’s farside structure, composition, and landforms are enigmatically different than those on the nearside, something which has ties to better understanding the evolution of our Solar System.
The first round of applications to study Chang’e 6 samples is open to Chinese research institutions, who need to apply by November 22. Applicants can check high-level sample properties such as weight, particle sizes, and composition before sending in their proposals. To maximize scientific…
