It is hoped that the monster can tell more about the moon and provide new knowledge about how best to sample the moon now.

In 1972, astronauts hammered a 70-centimeter tube into the lunar surface to obtain a core of lunar regolith. The upper part of the drill core was stored in a tube and returned to Earth. But the lower part underwent a special treatment: this part of the drill core was immediately vacuum stored in a specially developed and carefully sealed tube before it was transported to Earth. This makes it a unique moon monster; during the famous Apollo missions, only two lunar samples were obtained and stored in this way. And what’s just as special is that both lunar samples are still sealed and unstudied to this day.

Open

But that is about to change. Because researchers are working to open the 50-year-old lunar sample that astronauts collected on the moon in 1972 and stored in a vacuum. An exciting moment, in which a leading role is reserved for the Apollo Next Generation Sample Analysis Program: A research team hoping to learn more about the Moon using today’s technologies and techniques than anyone could have dreamed in 1972.

Astronaut Gene Cernan prepares to collect the lunar sample for analysis 50 years later. Image: NASA.

Second part

In 2019, the research team already opened the upper part of the lunar sample obtained in 1972 (also referred to as 73002). But now it is time for the lower part, also referred to as lunar sample 73001. Because this sample was obtained at a greater depth, the temperature at which this part of the drill core was drilled was also much lower. So low, in fact, that researchers are hopeful that this part of the lunar sample harbors volatiles that evaporate at normal or higher temperatures (think water ice and carbon dioxide). However, if such volatile gases are present in the sample, they are likely to be very small amounts. The challenge now is to extract those gases from the lunar sample and then analyze and identify them.

Modern technology

That would probably have been unthinkable in the 1970s, because it requires extremely sensitive equipment that can measure the mass of unknown molecules very accurately and reveal what kind of molecules we are dealing with. Fortunately, this technology will be available in 2022 and will be released on the rather unique lunar sample 73001. With the help of this technology, not only are accurate measurements possible, but it should also be possible to measure the gas obtained – and again: it is probably to divide very small amounts – into even smaller portions and then distribute those portions among an even larger group of scientists, after which those researchers can each investigate further in a different way.

What modern technology can do: Under an X-ray scan taken of lunar monster 73002 in 1974. Above a CT scan taken of the same sample in 2019.

“NASA knew that science and technology would evolve and allow scientists in the future to study the material in new ways and answer new questions,” said Lori Glaze, NASA’s director. Planetary Science Division† And that is why it was already decided in the Apollo era not to analyze all collected lunar samples immediately, but to save some for later. And this unique moon monster is one of them; it is one of the last unopened lunar monsters.

Time consuming

Although we will be able to study this monster in new ways and with new technologies in 2022, analyzing it remains a time-consuming process that has taken years. For example, researchers at the University of Washington have developed a device in recent years that can extract the gas from the lunar sample and carefully store it. Meanwhile, researchers from the European Space Agency were working on a tool that could pierce the duct containing the highly valuable lunar sample without escaping gas. “This tool is a unique system, built only to open the so-called Apollo sample 73001,” researcher Timon Schild said earlier.

Patience

All in all, it will be months before scientists can fully analyze the lunar sample. At the end of last month, a start was made on piercing the duct and collecting the gases. But that could take several weeks, NASA said. And only when all the gases have been removed from the lunar sample, a further analysis of the lunar soil stored in the same sample can also take place. And so our patience is put to the test. But after fifty years of waiting, those few extra months can of course be added.

The findings not only provide more insight into the area where astronauts roamed fifty years ago, but also have implications for the future. Because NASA wants to send people to the moon again in the short term during the so-called Artemis missions. “A better understanding of the geological history and evolution of the lunar samples collected from the Apollo landing areas will help us better prepare for samples we will encounter during the Artemis missions,” said NASA chief Thomas Zurbuchen. “The purpose of the Artemis missions is to collect cold and sealed samples near the south pole of the moon. And this (studying the Apollo samples, ed.) is an exciting way to learn about the tools needed to collect and transport these samples, analyze them and store them on Earth for future generations of scientists. .”

Update
The first manned Artemis mission was originally planned for 2024 and should take a female astronaut to the moon for the first time. It is now clear that 2024 is a bit too ambitious; last year, partly because the development of suitable clothing for the moon is running out, the mission was not possible until 2025 at the earliest. And a few weeks ago, NASA through its Inspector General Paul Martin announced that another postponement is inevitable and that the first woman won’t set foot on the moon until 2026 at the earliest. Again it has to do with the development of the spacesuits. In addition, the legal tug-of-war over who can now build a lunar lander on behalf of NASA – SpaceX or Blue Origin – also plays a role. Although that problem was settled by the court in November last year, it did mean that work on the lunar lander came to a standstill for some time.