Leonard David's INSIDE OUTER SPACE

The Chang’e-6 sample container is shown being removed from the Chang’e-6 return capsule.
Image credit: Jin Liwang via SegerYU X posting.

Findings from China’s Chang’e-6 lunar sample mission provide evidence of a “super-reduced” state in the Moon’s mantle.

Published in the journal Nature Communications, the study shows the mantle material beneath Chang’e-6’s landing site is not only drier and more depleted than samples from the Moon’s near side, but also exists in a more chemically reduced state, meaning elements tend to exist in lower oxidation states.

“It either hasn’t undergone oxidation, or may have become more reduced later, possibly due to some major impact event,” said Yang Wei, a researcher at the Institute of Geology and Geophysics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Image credit: CCTV/Inside Outer Space screengrab

Yang told China Central Television (CCTV) that the redox state of planetary bodies has always been a key indicator for understanding their internal processes and surface habitability.

Significant differences

The new findings confirm that significant differences between the lunar near side and far side extend deep into the mantle.

In 2024, Chang’e-6 rocketed to Earth 1,935.3 grams of lunar farside samples. These samples were collected from the South Pole-Aitken (SPA) Basin, the largest, deepest, and oldest basin on the Moon.

China’s Chang’e-6 lander/ascender in farside sampling scenery.
Image credit: CNSA/CLEP

Analysis of the lunar samples is clarifying the compositional differences between the near and far sides and to unravel the long-standing mystery of their asymmetry.

Guidance for ISRU

“Previously we could only observe the differences between the near side and far side through images,” Yang said. “But were these differences just superficial or did they extend hundreds of kilometers deep into the mantle? At least our current results prove that even at depths of several hundred kilometers, differences between the near side and far side persist. This is our new discovery.”

Image credit: CLEP

The new insight regarding the Moon’s formation and evolution also offers guidance for future lunar resource assessment and utilization.

To access the paper – “Magnetic signatures and origins of ferromagnetic minerals in Chang’e-6 lunar farside soils” – go to:

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-025-61705-1

Also, watch this CCTV video at:

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/177WSAr9kC/

Researchers from the Institute of Geology and Geophysics load test samples into lab equipment.
Image credit: CLEP