The moon is covered with small orange glass beads. Now we finally know why

Astronauts from the NASA Apollo program that visited the moon in the 1960s and 1970s found that the moon is covered with small orange glass beads – which are clues about the deep interior conditions of the moon in an age where our solar system was still young and dynamic.

Small orange glass beads discovered on the moon during the Age of NASA’s Apollo program can reveal an unknown story of lunar volcanism.

When Apollo astronauts first stepped on the lunar surface, they expected to find Rocks and Gray Dust.

What did not anticipate was discovering something that It seemed almost magical: Small bright orange beads scattered throughout the moon landscape as microscopic gems, tells the.

These tiny accounts, each smaller than a grain of sand, are actually Old time capsules From the time the moon was volcanically active, thousands of millions of years ago.

The accounts formed about 3.3 to 3.6 billion years during volcanic eruptions on the surface of the then young satellite.

The story of these glass accounts begins with explosive volcanic activity that would have been spectacular to witness. They formed when lunar volcanoes expelled material from the interior to the surface, where each drop of lava solidified instantly in the cold vacuum that surrounds the moon.

Imagine volcanic eruptions similar to the famous Hawaii Wash Sourcesbut happening in the space without air of space.

Without an atmosphere to slow them or weather conditions for erodir, these small glass spheres remained intact for over three billion years.

For 50 years, these samples remained in laboratories expecting technology to reach scientific curiosity. In a new study, the researchers finally managed to observe the interior of their accounts, using advanced microscopic techniques that did not exist during the Apollo era.

The investigators team used several cutting -edge tools, including high -energy and electronic microscopy beams to analyze accounts without damaging them. Had to be extremely careful To protect samples from the earth’s atmosphere, which could alter the old minerals on their surfaces.

“These are some of the most incredible extraterrestrial samples we have, the accounts are tiny immaculate lunar interior capsules, ”he says Ryan OglioreProfessor of Physics at the University of Washington, at the University.

What makes these accounts so valuable scientifically is that they come in different colors and compositions, counting different chapters of history Moon volcanic.

Some accounts are Bright orange, others are black and glossyand each variety reveals information on different types of eruptions that occurred over millions of years.

Minerals and isotopic composition of the surfaces of accounts serve as probes to the different pressure environmentstemperature and chemicals of the lunar eruptions for 3.5 billion years ago.

Scientists found that the style of volcanic activity has changed over time, providing information on how the moon has evolved.

Each small sphere contains clues about the deep interior conditions of the moon during an era when our solar system was still young and dynamic. “AND How to read the diary of an old lunar volcanologist“Says Ogliore.