Practically since the birth of humanity, the Moon has accompanied us on overnight nights. Our ancestors have been observing the natural satellite since ancient times and although millennia have passed since then, we continue trying to decipher the mysteries of the great orb of our celestial vault. With the passage of time and the help of technology, the study of the Moon has become more precise every day and although there were already maps that illustrated the large seas, oceans and valleys on its surface, a new map of the Moon has recently been published. natural satellite that collects an impressive amount of detail in high resolution.
It is among the countries that are at the forefront of aerospace exploration. It has been sending capsules to the Moon for study for a few years now and thanks to this, Chinese astronomers have managed to create a new highly precise map.
What is the new map of the Moon like?
The most detailed map of the Moon so far and in high resolution, it was created from data obtained through the Chinese Lunar Exploration Program, which has been working on the natural satellite for 15 months. In addition, it also contains high-quality data from international cooperation missions between the US, Japan and Italy.
Among the data that can be observed in it are the geological layers, as well as their structural characteristics and a chronology of the lunar surface. It also offers detailed information on 12,341 impact craters, 81 basins, 17 types of lunar rocks and 14 types of structures.
Overall, the map is more than a simple geographic graph of the Moon, but reveals the mysterious evolution of the lunar crust under igneous processes, catastrophic impacts and volcanic activities, as described by the researchers of the study published in Science Bulletin.
The map is available online at the official site of the National Space Science Center of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Upon entering, it shows us an elliptical perspective of the Moon and can also be broken down into stereographic projections, centered separately on the north and south poles of the natural Earth satellite. The creation of the most complete map of the Moon is of great importance for the study of lunar geological cartography that is used when deciding future lunar landings for manned or unmanned missions.