Moon Volcanoes Erupted During Dinosaur Era, New Evidence Shows

Recent research published in the journal Science has revealed that the Moon experienced volcanic activity as recently as 120 million years ago, much later than previously believed. The findings were based on the analysis of tiny glass beads collected by China's Chang’e-5 mission, which returned to Earth in 2020 with approximately 2 kilograms of lunar material. Out of 3,000 glass beads analyzed, three were determined to have a volcanic origin through their chemical composition and sulfur isotopes. Radiometric dating indicated these beads formed around 123 million years ago.

This discovery challenges the earlier understanding that the Moon's volcanic activity ceased about a billion years ago. Additionally, the study found that around 3% of previously identified impact glasses in Apollo samples also showed characteristics consistent with a volcanic origin. The new data suggests that small celestial bodies like the Moon could remain volcanically active much longer than previously thought, potentially leading to revised models of the Moon's deep interior and its thermal history. However, it remains unclear how the Moon sustained volcanic activity at such a late stage in its geological timeline.