09 September 2022
Leonard David looks into the reports about the discovery of a new lunar mineral by Chinese scientists at the Beijing Research Institute of Uranium Geology. The mineral was identified from Chang’e-5 samples. It was named "Chang’esite-(Y)" and is a phosphate, formed as column-shaped crystal, found in lunar basalt grains. It is ultra-tiny with a size no more than 10 microns. Chang’esite-(Y) has been officially approved as a new mineral by the Commission on New Minerals, Nomenclature and Classification of the International Mineralogical Association.
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