Negative Ions Found on Moon’s Surface by Chinese Lander
Image credit: CNSA/CLEP
The Moon´s Surface studied by The European Space Agency (ESA) which announced the detection of negative ions on the Moon’s Surface, just days after the Chinese National Space Agency’s Chang’e-6 lander placed detection equipment on the far side of the Moon.
Chang’e-6 Mission
Chang’e-6 landed on the Moon at 22:23 UTC on June 1. The lander collected samples from the lunar surface and lifted off for its return journey to Earth at 23:38 UTC on June 3. It aimed to bring back around 2 kilograms (4.4 pounds) of samples taken from up to 2 meters (6.6 feet) below the surface. Before taking off, the lander also delivered other payloads, including the ESA’s Negative Ions at the Lunar Surface (NILS) instrument.
NILS Instrument (used on Moon´s Surface)
The NILS instrument, designed to detect negative ions, began collecting data 280 minutes after landing at the South Pole-Aitken Basin. It powered down due to low voltage but managed to collect data during periods of reboots and communication blackouts. Neil Melville, ESA’s technical officer for the experiment, explained that the instrument alternated between bursts of full power and cooling periods due to heating issues. The instrument’s performance under extreme conditions highlighted the quality of the work done by the Swedish Institute of Space Physics.
Understanding Moon´s Surface Environment
Earth’s magnetic field and atmosphere protect us from the solar wind, but the Moon has only a thin atmosphere with gases like helium, argon, neon, ammonia, methane, and carbon dioxide. When solar wind particles hit the Moon’s surface, they create secondary particles. Positively charged particles are easier to detect from lunar orbit, but negatively charged ions are short-lived and require surface-level detection.
Findings and Future Research on Moon´s Surface
The team announced the detection of negative ions and is working on publishing their findings. Martin Wieser, NILS principal investigator, stated that these observations will help us understand the Moon’s surface environment better and serve as a guide for exploring negative ion populations on other airless bodies in the Solar System, including planets, asteroids, and other moons.
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