Finally, Scientists Solve the Geological Puzzle of the Moon

"Finally, Scientists Solve the Geological Puzzle of the Moon"

A sufficiently high concentration of the element titanium (Ti) on some surfaces of the Moon has been known since NASA's Apollo missions in the 1960s and 1970s, which successfully returned frozen lava samples from the Moon's crust. Recent mapping by orbiting satellites shows that this magma, known as high-Ti basalt, is widely distributed on the Moon.

"Through a series of high-temperature laboratory experiments using molten rock and advanced isotopic analysis of lunar samples, Professor Tim Elliott from the University of Bristol and his colleagues identified a critical reaction that controls the composition of this typical magma. This reaction occurred in the deep Moon's core about 3.5 billion years ago, involving the exchange of iron elements in the magma with magnesium elements in the surrounding rock, modifying the chemical and physical properties of the melt."

"The origin of volcanic rocks on the Moon is an interesting story, involving 'landslides' from unstable crystal piles on a planetary scale created by the cooling of primitive magma oceans," said Professor Elliott.

"

It is important to limit this epic history to the existence of a unique type of magma on the Moon, but explaining how that magma could even reach the surface, to be collected by space missions, is a difficult issue. Glad to be able to resolve this dilemma.

"

"So far, the models have not been able to create magma compositions that match the important chemical and physical characteristics of Ti-high basalt,""

said Dr. Martijn Klaver, a researcher at the Institute of Mineralogy at the University of Münster.

"Especially difficult to explain their low density, which allowed them to erupt about three and a half billion years ago.""

Finally, Scientists Solve the Geological Puzzle of the Moon

"We successfully replicated high-Ti basalt in the laboratory process using high-temperature experiments," said the researchers.

"The measurement of high-Ti basalt also reveals a characteristic isotopic composition that provides a fingerprint of the reactions reproduced by the experiment."
"The two results clearly demonstrate how integral the melt-solid reaction is in understanding the formation of this unique magma."

"This finding is published today in the journal Nature Geoscience."

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"Finally, Scientists Solve the Geological Puzzle of the Moon"

"The origin of volcanic rocks on the Moon is an interesting story, involving 'landslides' from unstable crystal piles on a planetary scale created by the cooling of primitive magma oceans," said Professor Elliott.

"So far, the models have not been able to create magma compositions that match the important chemical and physical characteristics of Ti-high basalt,""

"The measurement of high-Ti basalt also reveals a characteristic isotopic composition that provides a fingerprint of the reactions reproduced by the experiment.""The two results clearly demonstrate how integral the melt-solid reaction is in understanding the formation of this unique magma."

"The measurement of high-Ti basalt also reveals a characteristic isotopic composition that provides a fingerprint of the reactions reproduced by the experiment."
"The two results clearly demonstrate how integral the melt-solid reaction is in understanding the formation of this unique magma."