China Unveils 1:5 Million Moon Map, Redefining 3 Ancient Lunar Eras

1 articles · Updated · Space.com · Aug 16

Aug. 6 brought a new 1:5 million lunar map from the Institute of Geology, Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences, updating its 2024 edition with revised boundaries for the Aitkenian, Nectarian and Imbrian periods.
Reprocessed spectral data also expanded mapped KREEP terrane, which Chinese researchers now say is more continuous and abundant than earlier estimates.
Chang'e 5 and Chang'e 6 sample returns — including the first far-side lunar samples in 2024 — helped drive the revision and are expected to reshape debate over the moon's hidden hemisphere.
The map also introduces a Chinese cartographic standard that Xinhua said will guide future planetary geologic mapping, extending Beijing's push to shape technical rules in deep-space exploration.
That standards push comes as China and the United States compete not only in lunar missions but also over whose scientific and operational conventions — even lunar timekeeping — gain wider adoption.