Scientists Discover Rare Meteorite Relics in Chang’e-6 Lunar Samples

New Delhi — Chinese researchers analyzing lunar material returned by the Chang’e-6 mission have identified rare meteorite remnants, offering new insights into mass transfer processes within the Solar System.

The findings, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, were led by scientists from the Guangzhou Institute of Geochemistry (GIG) under the Chinese Academy of Sciences, according to Xinhua.

The study focused on CI chondrites, a rare class of meteorites abundant in water and organic matter, typically originating from the outer Solar System. On Earth, CI chondrites are extremely scarce — comprising less than one per cent of all known meteorites.

Unlike Earth, the Moon’s lack of atmosphere and tectonic activity allows it to preserve a pristine geological record of ancient asteroid impacts, making it a “natural archive” of cosmic history.

By employing advanced mineral and oxygen isotope analyses, the researchers confirmed that fragments found in the Chang’e-6 samples matched the composition of CI-like chondrites.

The results suggest that the Earth-Moon system may have experienced more frequent impacts from carbonaceous chondrites than previously believed.

“This discovery not only shows that material from the outer Solar System can migrate inward,” said Lin Mang, a GIG researcher, “but also helps explain the possible origins of lunar water.”

Lin added that the research “opens new directions for studying the distribution and evolution of water resources on the Moon.”

In addition, the study established a systematic framework for identifying meteoritic materials within extraterrestrial samples — a method that could guide future lunar and planetary analyses.

In 2024, Chang’e-6 made history by returning 1,935.3 grams of lunar soil from the far side of the Moon, specifically from the South Pole–Aitken Basin, the largest, deepest, and oldest known impact basin on the lunar surface.

With inputs from IANS