China is now the third country to discover a new mineral on the Moon.
China has recently discovered a crystal from the Moon. It is made of a mineral that was previously unknown. The country also confirms that the surface of the Moon contains an important material for nuclear fusion. Nuclear fusion is a process which happens in the sun and other stars which can provide unlimited energy.
The crystal was found in lunar samples that China’s Chang’e-5 collected when it landed on the Moon in 2020. The Chang’e-5 brought about 2kg of rocks from the Moon back to Earth.
The samples that China collected are the first Moon rocks brought to Earth since 1976. In the new samples, scientists at the Beijing Research Institute of Uranium Geology found a crystal that is thinner than a human hair.
The crystal is made of a newly discovered mineral that is now called Changesite-(Y). The new mineral and the Moon missions are named after the Chinese Moon goddess Chang’e.
Changesite—(Y) is the first mineral that China has discovered on the Moon and the sixth new mineral discovered in samples from the Moon. The U.S. and Russia are the only other countries that have found new minerals there.
The crystal is clear and comes from the northern part of the Moon which had many active volcanoes about 1.2 billion years ago.
Chinese state owned media says that the lunar samples also contain helium-3, which is a material that scientists and sci-fi writers have been excited about for a long time. It is potentially a fuel for nuclear fusion, the same type of energy found in stars. It’s not clear yet if we will be able to recreate that energy on Earth.
Helium-3 is very rare on Earth, but plentiful on the Moon. China, the U.S. and other countries are interested in extracting it from the Moon in the future.
VOCABULARY
- Discover – to find, especially unexpectedly; to become aware of;
- Mineral – a natural, solid material that is not alive
- Previously – before; earlier; at an earlier time
- Surface – the top or outside layer of something; exterior
- Material – a physical thing that you use to build or make other things (cotton is a common material used to make t-shirts)
- Lunar – relating to the Moon; something in connection to or from the Moon
- Sample – a small amount used for testing; a small part of something;
- Collect – bring together; gather; take in
- Named after – to give something/someone the same name as a different thing
- Goddess – a female god; a woman god
- State owned – a company or property that is owned and controlled by the government
- Sci-fi (science fiction) – fiction or fake stories, usually about the future or space
- Potentially – possible; maybe; likely; could become
- Recreate – reproduce; to create again; make the same
- Rare – not common; scarce; not a lot; very limited supply
- Plentiful – common; a lot of; abundant
- Extract – to remove; to collect and take away; to mine
Original story from VICE below:
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