Chinese scientists uncover why moon’s far-side soil is stickier
Soil retrieved by China’s Chang’e 6 mission in 2024 from the moon’s far side was unexpectedly sticky, while dust from the near side collected in earlier missions was loose and sandy, as reported by state media.
A study published Monday in Nature Astronomy by scientists from the Chinese Academy of Sciences determined that the soil’s “stickiness” results from a combination of extremely fine particles and jagged, irregular shapes.
The investigation began in June of last year, after Hu Hao, chief designer of Chang’e 6, observed that the soil from the South Pole-Aitken Basin appeared “slightly more viscous and somewhat clumpier” than near-side samples.
Tests led by Qi Shengwen at the Institute of Geology and Geophysics revealed that the far-side soil could maintain much steeper slopes, behaving more like damp garden soil on Earth than dry beach sand.
High-resolution CT scans of over 290,000 grains showed that far-side particles are extremely small—averaging 48.4 microns in diameter—yet unusually jagged and sharp, creating a “perfect storm” for stickiness. The rough surfaces increase friction between grains, locking them together, while their tiny size makes them susceptible to subtle forces like static electricity and Van der Waals interactions.
"This is unusual," Qi said. "Typically, finer particles are more spherical. Yet, the Chang'e 6 soil, despite being fine, has a more complex shape."
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