Researchers have examined over 400 glass particles collected from the far side of the Moon during the Change-6 mission, identifying 178 impact glass beads to analyze their microstructures and composition. These beads, formed from meteor impacts and subsequent regolith gardening, preserve physical and chemical details of the lunar surface's evolution.
Compared to similar samples from Change by Riko Seibo
Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Oct 24, 2025
Researchers have examined over 400 glass particles collected from the far side of the Moon during the Change-6 mission, identifying 178 impact glass beads to analyze their microstructures and composition. These beads, formed from meteor impacts and subsequent regolith gardening, preserve physical and chemical details of the lunar surface's evolution.
Compared to similar samples from Change-5 on the nearside, beads returned by Change-6 present greater morphological variety and compositional diversity. The team cataloged microstructures on the surfaces of the beads and compared them with nearside samples, noting that both lunar hemispheres experience similar regolith reworking through vapor, melt, and solid-phase processes driven by impacts, with the collision speeds much lower than those of extralunar objects.
However, several microstructures rare or absent on Change-5 samples appear in the Change-6 beads and are also found in Apollo and Luna mission samples. The presence of these unique microstructures is attributed to the older emplacement ages and more exotic mineral components within the regolith. Overall, the study concludes chemical changes across the Moon's surface are nonuniform, reflecting local variations in regolith protolith and impact history.
Research Report:Microstructures on Surfaces of Impact Glass Beads in Change-6 Regolith
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