Scientists continue to analyze rock and dirt samples brought by China’s Chang’e 5 lunar rover, and the latest results point to new types of geology in as yet unexplored and unexplored regions of the moon. Seven different types of rocks — loose, crumbly mud and debris from the moon’s surface — have been identified among 1,731 kilograms (3,816 pounds) of regolith that are 2 billion years old. One of the rocks is an entirely new type of lunar basalt, created at a time when the Moon was still volcanically active.

This regolith is the smallest of those returning from the Moon. It gives experts the opportunity to take a look at a time period different from other examples and helps them summarize a turbulent period in our near neighbor’s history. All seven rock types listed in the study are considered “exotic” and are believed to have arrived at their current landing site from elsewhere.

“In such a young geological unit, a wide variety of crustal components from different sources must have been transported to the Chang’e-5 landing site by processes occurring on the lunar surface,” the researchers wrote in their published paper.

About 3,000 particles less than 2 millimeters (0.08 inches) were eliminated by researchers while searching for evidence of past cratering and volcanic activity. As on Earth, such igneous rocks can tell a geological story.

According to the researchers, three of the shipwrecks had unusual petrological and compositional features. The high titanium-containing high-titanium rock fragment with larger crystals embedded in the vitreous rock has mineralogy never before seen on the Moon and likely represents a new type of lunar rock.

According to the study’s authors, these rock particles can be attached to regions on the Moon 400 kilometers (249 miles) from where they were taken and blown to the surface by successive asteroid impacts over thousands of years.

“These exotic magmatic eruptions can record lithological diversity and regolith seeding processes. [віком приблизно 2 мільярди років] Younger regions of the Moon,” write the researchers.

Put it all together and conclude that these fragments come from parts of the Moon’s surface that we don’t know geologically yet. There may even have been volcanic eruptions that we don’t know about yet.

However, only about 0.2 percent of the material in the samples was classified as exotic, rather than the expected 10 to 20 percent. This suggests that scientists may need to rethink how emissions move on the lunar surface, at least in this new region. Chang’e 5 collected its samples at the Mons Rümker site of Oceanus Procellarum north of the Moon, and more samples, along with samples from previous missions, will help learn more about how the lunar surface evolved and where the future lies. Landing and base areas should be found.