China’s lunar rover may have found minerals from the moon’s mantle

New observations could answer questions about how Earth’s nearest neighbor evolved

farside of the moon

INSIDE OUT  China’s Chang’e-4 mission, which landed in a massive impact basin on the farside of the moon (pictured in false-color blue and purple hues) in January, has detected what appears to be lunar mantle material on the moon’s surface.

NASA/GSFC/Univ. of Arizona

The first mission to the farside of the moon may have found bits of the moon’s interior on its surface.