China News Service, Beijing, September 9th (Guo Chaokai, Ma Shuaisha) On September 9th, the eve of the traditional Chinese festival Mid-Autumn Festival, the National Space Administration and the National Atomic Energy Agency jointly released the latest scientific achievements of Chang'e 5 in Beijing: Chinese scientists are on the moon for the first time. The new mineral found on the site was named "Chang'e Stone".

This mineral is the sixth new mineral discovered by humans on the moon. my country has become the third country in the world to discover new minerals on the moon after the United States and the former Soviet Union.

lunar samples.

Image source: CNNC Nuclear and Earth Research Institute

　　How was this new mineral discovered?

Why is it named "Chang'e Stone"?

A reporter from Chinanews.com recently interviewed the research team of the Institute of Nuclear and Geosciences who discovered the "Chang'e Stone" to find out.

　　New Moon Mineral Discovered from 140,000 Particles

　　On December 17, 2020, my country's Chang'e-5 lunar probe successfully returned to Earth with 1,731 grams of lunar "native products". This is the first time humans have collected lunar samples after more than 40 years, and it has also made China the third successful lunar sample collection. s country.

　　In June 2021, the Chang'e 5 lunar samples will be open to the whole society for application.

The Institute of Nuclear Geosciences is one of the first 13 research institutes to obtain lunar samples. Three projects have been approved successively, namely "Research on Fusion Nuclear Energy (3He) of Chang'e-5 Lunar Samples" and "Chang'e-5 Lunar Samples". Uranium (Thorium) Nuclear Energy Nuclide and Isotope Research" and "Lunar Nuclear Energy Element Uranium Series Nuclide Research and Significance"; the goal is to carry out independent basic geological research on lunar fission and fusion resources, and provide important basic data for lunar evolution and lunar resource evaluation.

Microscope photo of a lunar sample.

Image source: CNNC Nuclear and Earth Research Institute

　　During the mineralogical study of the first batch of lunar soil powder samples obtained, the research team of the Institute of Nuclear Geosciences discovered clues of new minerals.

At that time, it was a particle of about 10 microns, which interacted and coexisted with pyroxene. No matter the experimental method or the later data processing, there was no way to remove the pyroxene, so the ideal structural data had not been obtained.

　　After applying for the soil sample for the second month, the scientific research team counted 140,000 particles on the sample target and found traces of some new minerals, but it is hoped that only one single crystal structure can be detected, and this one is still cracked into three pieces.

In the end, the team used a focused ion beam electron microscope to cut out a pure single crystal particle of 10*7*4 microns, which is less than one-tenth of the average diameter of an ordinary human hair.

　　The researchers then transferred the particles to a single crystal diffractometer to collect diffraction data, and finally decipher the crystal structure of the new mineral.

They carried out Raman spectroscopic analysis, crystal optical description, physical property calculation, etc. on the new mineral, and determined it to be a new mineral that has never been discovered through systematic and detailed mineralogical research.

　　Named "Chang'e Stone" to pay tribute to China's aerospace industry

　　This new lunar mineral is named "Chang'e Stone", and its English name is Changesite-(Y), which consists of change (the Chinese pinyin of Chang'e) + s+ite (English suffix, indicating minerals) + Y (special ingredient suffix) .

　　"Chang'e stone" was found in the basalt debris of the Chang'e 5 lunar soil. It is a new phosphate mineral and belongs to the Merrillite family.

The ideal chemical formula is (Ca8Y)□Fe2+ (PO4)7, the crystal structure belongs to the trigonal system, and the space group is R3c.

The particles are about 2 to 30 microns in the shape of tiny columns, and associated minerals include fayalite, clinopyroxene, ilmenite, anorthite, baddeleyite, cristobalite, troilite and glass.

　　The research team of the Institute of Nuclear and Geosciences wrote a research report and submitted it to the New Mineral Classification and Nomenclature Committee of the International Mineralogical Society.

In August 2022, the New Mineral Classification and Nomenclature Committee of the International Mineralogy Society unanimously approved the Chang'e Stone Research Report and issued an approval letter.

Chinese scientists have discovered the new lunar mineral "Chang'e Stone" for the first time.

Image source: CNNC Nuclear and Earth Research Institute

　　After being reviewed by 20 mineralogists from many countries, the new mineral Chang'e (Changesite-(Y)) declared by the lunar soil research team of the Institute of Nuclear Geosciences was awarded the International Mineralogical Association (IMA) on August 3, 2022. ) officially approved by the New Mineral Classification and Nomenclature Committee (CNMNC) with approval number IMA2022-023a.

　　According to the research team of the Institute of Nuclear and Geosciences, the reason why it was named "Chang'e Stone": First, to commemorate the first time the Chang'e project retrieved samples; second, the pronunciation is closer to the Chinese Chang'e stone, which is also friendly to foreigners; third, "S" is both It is the first letter at the beginning of Chinese "Shi-Shi" and English "Stone-Stone". "Stone" is usually the general term for "mineral rocks" by the public; fourth, the name Changesite can be divided into Change (chang'e) and site (address) , can be understood as Chang'e's residence, that is, the moon, and can be interpreted as the landing site of Chang'e 5; fifth, the name can also be understood as Change (change) and site (address), which can be extended to the location of this moon landing and the previous Apollo (US) and Luna (Russia) are different.

Naming the new mineral "Chang'e Stone" expresses the scientific research team's tribute to China's aerospace industry and China's deep space exploration.

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