# China trying to bring moon rocks back **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [December 1, 2020, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/china-trying-to-bring-moon-rocks-back/926926 "2020-12-01T15:23:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2020, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/china-trying-to-bring-moon-rocks-back/926926/21 "2020-12-04T05:00:37Z")
> [@Fiendish\_Astronaut](#): > > The US are sending people to the moon in 2024. They started assembling the rocket this week. I struggle to understand the point of this. It is totally ‘been there done that,’ unless the idea is to do it again with much more high-definition video footage this time, or something. Mars be waiting. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2020, 5:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/china-trying-to-bring-moon-rocks-back/926926/22 "2020-12-04T05:21:26Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > You do realize you’re talking to an actual genuine scientist in the relevant field, right? What the hell are you talking about? No disrespect to Chronos, but I’m talking to a smallish-town middle-school substitute math teacher. Who–judging from that comment–knows exactly jack shit about what can be learned from lunar rocks. THESE are genuine scientists in the relevant field: > **[Lunar Sample Requests](https://curator.jsc.nasa.gov/lunar/sampreq/requests.cfm)** > > NASA Astromaterials Curation, an integral part of any sample return mission, comprises preparation and allocation of samples for research and education, initial characterization of new samples, and secure storage for the benefit of future... ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2020, 5:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/china-trying-to-bring-moon-rocks-back/926926/23 "2020-12-04T05:52:47Z")
Recent articles: [https://www.nasa.gov/feature/nasa-selects-teams-to-study-untouched-moon-samples](https://www.nasa.gov/feature/nasa-selects-teams-to-study-untouched-moon-samples) > **[One small grain of moon dust, one giant leap for lunar studies](https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/02/200207095427.htm)** > > Scientists have found a new way to analyze the chemistry of the moon's soil using a single grain of dust brought back by Apollo 17 astronauts in 1972. Their technique can help us learn more about conditions on the surface of the moon and formation of... ---
**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2020, 7:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/china-trying-to-bring-moon-rocks-back/926926/24 "2020-12-04T07:23:34Z")
**Moderator Note** > [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > What an incredibly, profoundly stupid thing to say. > [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > Who–judging from that comment–knows exactly jack shit about what can be learned from lunar rocks. This is basically attacking the poster and not the post. Saying “No disrespect” does not negate this. You can easily refute the point without adding the commentary about your opinion of the poster’s knowledge, as you did with the articles that you linked to. Dial it way back, please. Focus on the post, not the poster. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2020, 11:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/china-trying-to-bring-moon-rocks-back/926926/25 "2020-12-04T11:47:18Z")
To be clear, I didn’t say that we’d learned all that we could about the Moon; I said that we’d learned all that we could from moon rocks. And to be even clearer, I should have clarified that I meant that we’d learned all that we could from bringing moon rocks back. New analysis techniques could be applied to the rocks we already have. Now, we could learn more by, say, drilling into the surface, to recover samples from deep below. That’d give us a new source of information that we don’t have from the current samples. But that’s not what China is planning on doing. And further, when people talk about all of the spinoffs from the Apollo program, they often miss the most impactful one: It got kids excited about science. China’s mission, even if it doesn’t have any direct scientific benefit, will still do that. That’s why I said that I 100% supported it. ---
**Author:** ![Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiendish_astronaut/32/3295_2.png) [@Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiendish_Astronaut)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2020, 11:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/china-trying-to-bring-moon-rocks-back/926926/26 "2020-12-04T11:56:13Z")
Hmm… > **[Nasa to pay company $1 to collect rocks from moon](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-55170788)** > > The US space agency has awarded two American and one Japanese firm contracts to pick up lunar soil. ---
**Author:** ![cannon\_gray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cannon_gray/32/6030_2.png) [@cannon\_gray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cannon_gray)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2020, 10:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/china-trying-to-bring-moon-rocks-back/926926/27 "2020-12-28T10:27:55Z")
When Apollo brought lunar rocks in the 70s the scientists have found out that the rocks are similar to granite. It is very rare on the Moon, but quite common on our planet, so I don’t get why NASA pays someone for these rocks and why the lunar soil is so special. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2020, 12:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/china-trying-to-bring-moon-rocks-back/926926/28 "2020-12-28T12:50:55Z")
> [@cannon\_gray](#): > > When Apollo brought lunar rocks in the 70s the scientists have found out that the rocks are similar to granite. It is very rare on the Moon, but quite common on our planet, so I don’t get why NASA pays someone for these rocks and why the lunar soil is so special There are two main types of lunar rocks–basalt (the dark areas) and anorthosite (the light areas). Neither of these should be taken for granite. As for why study them, here is the tip of an iceberg for you. > **[The Apollo moon rocks continue to reveal secrets of the cosmos](https://www.popsci.com/5-crucial-facts-moon-rocks-taught-us/)** > > Over the course of six Apollo missions—the first of which celebrates its 50-year anniversary this week—astronauts retrieved 842 pounds of sand, dust, and rocks. > **[The secrets in a pile of moon rocks](https://www.vox.com/the-highlight/2019/6/21/18677691/apollo-anniversary-moon-rock-lunar-sample-geology)** > > Lunar samples reveal the epic history of the cosmos. > **[What the Apollo Moon rocks told us](https://www.astronomy.com/observing/what-the-apollo-moon-rocks-told-us/)** > > categories:Human Spaceflight, Space Exploration, The Moon | tags:Apollo, NASA, News, The Moon ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2020, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/china-trying-to-bring-moon-rocks-back/926926/29 "2020-12-29T04:12:22Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > There are two main types of lunar rocks–basalt (the dark areas) and anorthosite (the light areas). Neither of these should be taken for granite. I suppose that pun was inevitable, but still, there will be punishment. As far as the Chinese rocks, yes they will help advance our knowledge of the Moon and perhaps the solar system in general. The more different locations we have samples from, the better our understanding becomes. > [@Jasmine](#): > > I find it depressing that, after 50 years, we’re still at the “bringing back moon rocks” stage of manned space exploration. Really?! How exciting. Hey, NASA has advanced to bringing back asteroid rocks: > **[OSIRIS-REx](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OSIRIS-REx)** > > OSIRIS-REx\[a\] was a NASA asteroid-study and sample-return mission that visited and collected samples from 101955 Bennu, a carbonaceous near-Earth asteroid. The material, returned in September 2023, is expected to enable scientists to learn more about the formation and evolution of the Solar System, its initial stages of planet formation, and the source of organic compounds that led to the formation of life on Earth. Following the completion of the primary OSIRIS-REx (Regolith Explorer) mi OSIR... ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2020, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/china-trying-to-bring-moon-rocks-back/926926/30 "2020-12-29T05:12:47Z")
When I read the thread title I thought China was trying to take our moon rocks back to the moon. ---
**Author:** ![cannon\_gray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cannon_gray/32/6030_2.png) [@cannon\_gray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cannon_gray)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2020, 8:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/china-trying-to-bring-moon-rocks-back/926926/31 "2020-12-29T08:03:03Z")
Thank you for taking the time to give me the answer. I have checked the articles you sent and you are right, the rock from the Moon is a valuable resource to take experiments, but still, I don’t get why NASA pay someone for these rocks 🤷‍♀️ From PopularScience: NASA still has around 85 percent of the Apollo program’s lunar sample collection. “These samples were deliberately saved so we can take advantage of today’s more advanced and sophisticated technology to answer questions we didn’t know we needed to ask” Here we see the irrational waste of money taking into consideration that NASA’s budget is limited. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2020, 9:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/china-trying-to-bring-moon-rocks-back/926926/32 "2020-12-29T09:40:07Z")
> [@dtilque](#): > > I suppose that pun was inevitable, but still, there will be punishment. Hey, some of us appreciate gneiss geology humour. We’re KREEPy that way. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2020, 9:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/china-trying-to-bring-moon-rocks-back/926926/33 "2020-12-29T09:46:24Z")
Do you get that the existing NASA moon rocks are from _very_ limited locations? It would be as though I sampled a literal handful of rocks in Central Park, chipped a piece off Devil’s Tower, and pocketed some some sand from Miami Beach and then declared I now had a comprehensive picture of US geology. More is better. ---
**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2021, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/china-trying-to-bring-moon-rocks-back/926926/34 "2021-01-04T12:36:17Z")
> [@dtilque](#): > > Hey, NASA has advanced to bringing back asteroid rocks: Is it even necessary? We are regularly impacted by objects from outer space, and some of them are from our very own asteroid belt. Though not as reliable or as fast as Amazon Prime, the Asteroid Belt does have a delivery service. 😈 ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2021, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/china-trying-to-bring-moon-rocks-back/926926/35 "2021-01-04T12:43:52Z")
> [@Jasmine](#): > > Is it even necessary? Yes it is. Entering the atmosphere and landing on Earth modifies and contaminates meteorites. Getting them straight from the source avoids that. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2021, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/china-trying-to-bring-moon-rocks-back/926926/36 "2021-01-04T14:29:27Z")
Plus you may be sampling different parent bodies than you get from the current crop of meteorites. ([Sampled bodies changes over time](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ordovician_meteor_event).) ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2021, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/china-trying-to-bring-moon-rocks-back/926926/37 "2021-01-16T02:29:54Z")
> [@Jasmine](#): > > Is it even necessary? We are regularly impacted by objects from outer space, and some of them are from our very own asteroid belt. Yes. At least from a scientific point of view. By the time we recover bits from the asteroid belt here on earth, they have been heated just a tad by their entry through the atmosphere, and have also been contaminated upon landing. The contamination issue is solved (a bit) when we find them on the ice sheets in Antarctica, but not by much. ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2021, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/china-trying-to-bring-moon-rocks-back/926926/38 "2021-01-23T20:20:26Z")
NASA lent Biden a moon rock for the oval office [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/china-trying-to-bring-moon-rocks-back/926926.md?page=1)