Image source: topwar.ru
A Chinese research group led by scientists from the Institute of Geology of the Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences, together with the Institute of Geochemistry, the Universities of Jilin, Shandong and the Geological University of China, has completed the compilation of a new geological map of the Moon. The scale is 1:5,000,000.
The map, measuring about 280 cm in length and 120 cm in height, also includes additional sheets for the polar regions. 13,519 impact craters, 81 impact basins are marked in detail on the map, 14 types of geological structures and 17 varieties of rocks are identified.
Image source: topwar.ru
The new map is a logical continuation of the world's first 1:2.5 million scale geological atlas of the Moon, released by China in 2024, and significantly redefines ideas about lunar evolution. Thanks to the samples delivered by the Chang'e‑5 mission, scientists have shifted the end of the Moon's volcanic activity from 3 to 2 billion years ago. For the first time in the global stratigraphic scale, a boundary appeared that is tied to the absolute dates of Chinese samples: the Eratosthenic period is now divided into early and late sublayers.
Special attention in the new work is paid to the so-called KREEP crypt rocks - enriched in rare earth elements, thorium, uranium and phosphorus. Based on highly accurate data, it turned out that the area of distribution of KREEP is much wider than previously thought, which means that its real reserves were underestimated. According to experts, these rocks alone contain from 22.5 to 45 billion tons of rare earth elements (in terms of oxides). In addition, titanium-rich igneous rocks with up to 30% ilmenite (titanium ironstone) content have been found in the "marine" basalts. The moon also has significant resources of helium‑3, theoretically from 1 to 5 million tons, as well as iron, aluminum, silicon, potassium and other elements.
The symbols and color scheme developed for this map have been approved as a standard by the Geological Society of China. The unified system will also be used to create geological maps of Mars, asteroids and other celestial bodies as part of future space programs. The Chinese Academy of Sciences says that in this way the foundation is being laid for a fully independent national school of planetary cartography.
