Widespread ilmenite contributions to the surface water cycle in lunar Procellarum KREEP Terrane.

The role of widespread ilmenite in lunar mare regions in the abundance and diurnal variations of surficial OH/HO remains controversial. Here, we report the water content and hydrogen isotopes in the rims of lunar ilmenites from Chang'e-5 soil samples using an ion microprobe. Ilmenite rims exhibit higher water contents (~730 - 3,700 ppm) and lower δD values (-884 to -482‰) than that of the lunar mantle, indicating a predominantly endogenic origin from solar-wind (SW) implantation.

South Pole-Aitken massive impact 4.25 billion years ago revealed by Chang'e-6 samples.

As the largest and oldest well-preserved impact structure on the Moon, the South Pole-Aitken (SPA) basin on the lunar farside is critical for understanding early solar system dynamics and lunar history, but accurately determining its age remains challenging. Crater-counting chronology and Apollo sample studies propose various SPA-forming ages, which require validation by   sampling of the SPA basin. Here, we present the petrology, geochemistry and chronology of norite clasts from the SPA basin that were returned by Chang'e-6.

Return to the Moon: New perspectives on lunar exploration.

Lunar exploration is deemed crucial for uncovering the origins of the Earth-Moon system and is the first step for advancing humanity's exploration of deep space. Over the past decade, the Chinese Lunar Exploration Program (CLEP), also known as the Chang'e (CE) Project, has achieved remarkable milestones. It has successfully developed and demonstrated the engineering capability required to reach and return from the lunar surface.

Olivine-norite rock detected by the lunar rover Yutu-2 likely crystallized from the SPA-impact melt pool.

Chang'E-4 landed in the South Pole-Aitken (SPA) basin, providing a unique chance to probe the composition of the lunar interior. Its landing site is located on ejecta strips in Von Kármán crater that possibly originate from the neighboring Finsen crater. A surface rock and the lunar regolith at 10 sites along the rover Yutu-2 track were measured by the onboard Visible and Near-Infrared Imaging Spectrometer in the first three lunar days of mission operations.