Daniel FischerJul 10, 2025
Ultra-depleted mantle source of basalts from the South Pole–Aitken basin: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-025-09131-7 -> "Here we present the petrology and geochemistry of basalt fragments from Chang’e-6 (CE6), the first returned #LunarFarside samples from the SPA basin [...] Either way, originating during the LMO or later melt extraction, the ultra-depleted mantle beneath the SPA basin offers a deep observational window into early lunar crust–mantle differentiation." Three older CE6 papers are also in https://www.nature.com/nature/volumes/643/issues/8071 with the strange cover picture https://bsky.app/profile/andrewjonesspace.bsky.social/post/3ltlh6d4h5c2d which is probably fake: https://bsky.app/profile/stim3on.bsky.social/post/3ltlm6um3a223
Ultra-depleted mantle source of basalts from the South Pole–Aitken basin - Nature

Extreme Sr–Nd depletion in 2.8-billion-year-old basalt fragments from the lunar farside South Pole–Aitken basin suggests an ultra-depleted mantle source resulting from lunar magma ocean crystallization and/or later impact-related melt extraction.

Nature
StellarSnapJun 28, 2025
📸 Lunar Farside
From lunar orbit, we can view the Moon's rugged farside. This sharp mosaic, made from over 15,000 images by NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, reveals a surface very different from the smooth nearside.
📅 June 28, 2025
📷 NASA / GSFC / ASU / LRO
🔗 https://stellarsnap.space
#APOD #LunarFarside #Moon #LRO #LunarReconnaissanceOrbiter #NASA #Astrophotography #StellarSnap #LunarScience #PlanetaryScience #MoonCrust #NoDarkMaria
Khurram Wadee ✅Jun 28, 2025

#LunarFarside
#Astronomy #Picture of the Day

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap250628.html

#APOD #Moon

Daniel FischerApr 10, 2025
Water abundance in the lunar farside mantle: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-025-08870-x -> Chinese Scientists Discover Drier Mantle on Moon's Farside, Offering Potential Insight on Lunar Evolution: https://english.cas.cn/head/202503/t20250327_908846.shtml / Drier #LunarFarside offers insight on moon's evolution: https://english.news.cn/20250409/3a1859b37d144d418055eee52449f50b/c.html / Soil from the moon’s far side suggests drier conditions than the side facing Earth: https://apnews.com/article/moon-far-side-near-side-water-18081418600ea93bac69ac6af86a761b
Water abundance in the lunar farside mantle - Nature

An estimate of water abundance in the lunar mantle indicates that the farside mantle is potentially drier than its nearside counterpart.

Nature
Ansgar Schmidt May 11, 2024
Here’s Where China’s Sample Return Mission is Headed https://www.universetoday.com/166920/heres-where-chinas-sample-return-mission-is-headed/ #southpole-aitkenbasin #lunarsamplereturn #lunardichotomy #lunarhighlands #apollocrater #basalticlava #lunarfarside #change-6 #missions #china #moon
Here's Where China's Sample Return Mission is Headed

In late June, China's Chang'e 6 mission will return the first sample from the lunar far side. Maybe we can finally solve the lunar dichotomy.

Universe Today