They found a strange rock on the dark side of Mun …

The Chinese Yutu-2 roverAnd the Exploring the moon’s surface, I found a strange rock on the far side of Earth’s natural satelliteWhich aroused the enthusiasm of the scientists working on the project, Describe the discovery as a “milestone”.

As published by the portal Our space, The Chinese Language Science Awareness Channel of the China National Space Administration (CNSA), the team analyzed the rocks in question using the Yutu-2 Visible and Near Infrared Imaging Spectroscopy (VNIS) device, which detects scattered or reflected light on materials and uses that information to detect Configured.

Scientists used the VNIS system to investigate several other rock and regolith samples during the Yutu-2 mission, which travels through the Von Kármán crater. Previous samples include unusual bits of molten glass and potential lunar mantle materials.

The result generated the interest of the professional community. “It appears to have a sliver shape and is sticking out of the ground. This is definitely unusual,” L said Space.com Dan Moriarty is a postdoctoral NASA fellow at the Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.

“Repetitive impacts, stresses from thermal circulation, and other forms of weathering on the surface of the moon tend to break rocks into more or less spherical shapes, given adequate time,” Moriarty said. “Think of how the rocky beaches are being eroded by rocks into smooth round shapes over time due to the repeated bombardment of the waves,” he added, explaining why the discovery was unusual.

Moriarty stated that Both the shape of the chunk and the apparent ‘rim’ running near the edge of the rock seem to indicate that it is geologically small and has been there for a relatively short period.

“I certainly foretell Its origin was the result of ejection from a collision in a nearby crater. It is possible that a rock of this shape was generated by a process known as fragmentation, whereby intact rock fragments are ejected from the near surface without subjecting to the same degree of shock stresses as the immediate target, ”said Moriarty, who added that your initial assessment is only a guess.

VNIS data will provide more information. Clive Neal, a senior lunar expert at the University of Notre Dame, agrees that according to the images, the samples are shock bombings and not the exposed bedrock. The question I ask is, are they of local origin? Hopefully, the spectral data will allow the origin to be assessed as being local or alien, that is, from outside this region, “he said.

The Yutu-2 and Chang’e 4 probe have already greatly exceeded their design life – 90 Earth days and 1 year, respectively. The spacecraft has covered a total of 628 meters (2,060 feet) since its launch from the probe on January 3, 2019.

In November last year, China launched the Chang’e 5 moon resampling mission. The mission collected 3.81 lbs. (1.73 kg) samples that were sent to Earth after only three weeks. CNSA last month published procedures for requesting samples for scientific analysis.