Chinese researchers have found graphene in Chang'o-5 samples taken from the moon, raising questions about whether the celestial body was actually formed after the collision between Earth and Theia, the South China Morning Post reported.
By analyzing material samples using Raman spectroscopy, the Chela University staff found pieces of graphene with 2 to 7 layers, which were part of a previously connected carbon shell.
Graphene is a single-atom-thick layer of graphite that forms a hexagonal lattice. This two-dimensional crystal has special physical properties that have been widely researched since the beginning of the 21st century. At the nanoscale, it is stronger than steel, a potential superconductor, and when applied to a solar cell, it can produce energy even in poor lighting conditions. Its natural appearance is also interesting, not only from a historical point of view, but also because science is still searching for a method that can be used to produce large quantities of high-quality graphene.
Old things disappeared one by one.
Back to the Moon: Graphene has also been found in samples brought back by the US Apollo program. These layers were single layers and are thought to be traces of meteorite impacts. Based on the analyses, it was thought that carbon was rarely found on the Moon because it was vaporized along with other low-boiling elements in a previous cataclysmic event. This event was a collision between early Earth and a Mars-sized planet called Theia, which created the Moon.
Chinese researchers have acknowledged that a meteorite impact is also a possible explanation. However, according to them, The two-billion-year-old graphene layers are local layers. volcanic activity It may have been formed during collision with the iron-rich surface and solar wind. This implies that the carbon did not evaporate, but on the other hand, there is a process that binds the remaining carbon on the Moon without a magnetic field and atmosphere.
The theory that the Moon was formed in an ancient planetary collision is not something we will break a stick for now. This is at best the beginning of a new scientific debate, in which the Chinese party-state newspaper will not have the last word. However, in order to explain the role of the graphene story, it is worth getting acquainted with the current state of China’s lunar program and international diplomacy.
The bad moon has risen
The lunar carbon results are based on samples from the Chang'o-5 mission. These samples were returned to Earth four years ago, so they are not the most recent sample returned by Chang'o-6 from the far side of the Moon.
The Chang'o-6 rover successfully and accurately landed in Inner Mongolia on June 25, carrying two kilograms of lunar soil. The container containing the samples was discovered on Monday, and scientific analysis will take years. All that is known about them so far is that the samples are denser, stickier and more fragmented than those on the side of the moon that faces us.
If the scientific narrative about the Moon’s composition, based on US samples, is successfully challenged on the basis of samples from Chang’e-5, the question is what new samples from other regions will emerge. The US is currently busy with the Artemis programme and is therefore in no position to bring back its own samples.
There is a competitive situation where China does not miss such high balls.
China has previously announced that it will also share lunar samples with the international scientific community. However, American researchers are not eligible for this, as it is prohibited by their own laws. The so-called Wolf Law was proposed by Frank Wolf of Virginia in 2011, and prohibits NASA from using public funds for activities related to Chinese programs. The law dates back to the dawn of the Sino-American space race, when it was discovered that China had acquired technical know-how from private American satellite companies, which it then used in its intercontinental ballistic missile weapons.
At a news conference last week, Bian Zhigang, vice president of the China Space Agency, cited the law and said the Americans must remove legal obstacles to cooperation.
(CNN, Futuristic, Interesting engineering, Hey ho!)
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