Scientists analyzing images from India's Chandrayaan-3 mission and satellites suggest that the spacecraft may have landed in one of the Moon's oldest craters. Formed during the Nectarian period around 3.85 billion years ago, the crater is a key feature from the Moon's early history. The team, which includes researchers from the Physical Research Laboratory and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) in Ahmedabad, is studying the data to confirm the landing site and its significance.
According to a report of PTI, S Vijayan, an associate professor in the Planetary Sciences Division, Physical Research Laboratory said, "Chandrayaan-3 landing site is a unique geological setting where no other missions have gone. The images from the mission's Pragyan rover are the first on-site ones of the Moon at this latitude. They reveal how the Moon evolved over time".
"The images from the mission's Pragyan rover are the first on-site visuals of the Moon at this latitude, providing insights into the Moon's evolution," the news agency quoted Vijayan as saying. A crater is formed when an asteroid impacts a larger body's surface, and the displaced material is known as 'ejecta'. According to the research team, the images revealed that one half of the crater was buried under material ejected from the South Pole-Aitken basin, the largest and most well-known impact basin on the Moon.
The scientists' study has been published in the journal Icarus. Vijayan, the corresponding author, explained that the formation of ejecta is similar to "throwing a ball on sand, where some of the sand gets displaced or thrown outward into a small pile." He further noted that when an impact basin forms, surface material is ejected, and if the basin has a larger diameter, "sub-surface materials from greater depths will be excavated." This process provides valuable insights into the Moon's geological history.