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The map will expand the scope of future research into Earth’s satellite
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Alones Creative / iStock [Photo source]
Chinese scientists have completed work on an updated geological map of the entire surface of the Moon at a scale of 1:5,000,000. It incorporates scientific data not included in the 2024 version. This was reported by Xinhua News Agency, a partner of TV BRICS, citing the Institute of Geology at the Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences (IGCAGS).
The new map has been compiled based on research carried out as part of China’s lunar programme. Scientists have also revised the Moon’s geological chronology – updating the age boundaries of the Earth’s satellite’s three oldest geological periods. Soil samples brought back by the Chinese Chang’e-5 mission played a key role in this. Analysis of these samples confirmed that volcanic activity on the Moon continued as recently as around 2 billion years ago.
The new geological map also incorporates, for the first time, the results of the Chang’e-6 mission, which brought back samples from the far side of the Moon. Scientists have presented data on the age of young basaltic rocks in the lunar maria on the far side of the Moon. These findings allow for a more detailed reconstruction of the region’s volcanic history.
"The lunar samples and this map will provide a new starting point for scientific discussions regarding the lunar far side," noted Jin Ming, a research fellow at the institute.
The map reflects new data on lunar minerals. Researchers have established that rocks rich in rare-earth elements and other strategically important resources in the Ocean of Storms, or Oceanus Procellarum, region (the largest lunar mare) are much more widespread and continuous than previously thought.
Furthermore, the map represents a new Chinese cartographic standard. It measures 280 centimetres in length and 120 centimetres in width. It marks more than 13,500 impact craters and 81 impact basins (large depressions on the Moon’s surface). The colour scheme is based on both geological logic and traditional Chinese aesthetics: lighter shades denote younger formations, while darker shades denote older ones.
In future, this standard is set to be used in the creation of geological maps of Mars and asteroids, which will enable China to move away from relying on foreign cartographic systems. As the institute’s director, Yang Zhiming, noted, the standard will form the basis for future geological mapping of planets and will enable the establishment of an independent intellectual property system within the field of Chinese deep-space exploration.
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