Core Findings - The research team led by Xu Yigang from the Guangzhou Institute of Geochemistry has accurately determined that the Apollo Basin on the Moon formed 4.16 billion years ago, providing key evidence for the Late Heavy Bombardment in the solar system [1][2] - This new finding advances the timeline for the onset of the Late Heavy Bombardment by at least 100 million years, challenging the previous hypothesis of a catastrophic increase in impact flux during 4 to 3.8 billion years ago [2] Research Methodology - The team analyzed 3.5 grams of lunar soil, discovering three rock fragments with diameters between 150 and 350 micrometers, which are ideal "rock clocks" that record impact events [1] - The age of the rock fragments was confirmed through a combination of remote sensing images and geochemical data, leading to the conclusion that the impact flux during the Late Heavy Bombardment was gradually decreasing rather than experiencing a sudden increase [2]

（原载于《科技日报》 2025-08-21 第03版） 研究团队在仅3.5克的月壤中，发现了三颗直径为150—350微米的特殊岩石碎屑。这些岩屑是阿波 罗盆地形成时产生的撞击熔融岩石，是记录撞击事件最理想的"岩石时钟"。 研究团队准确测定了岩屑的年龄，同时综合遥感图像和地球化学数据等多方面的信息，最终确认岩 屑记录的41.6亿年为阿波罗盆地的形成年龄。这一研究新获得的年龄将月球晚期重轰击事件的开始时间 点向前推进了至少1亿年，更新了"撞击风暴"开始的时间，推翻了月球撞击通量的"灾变说"，并且揭示 了早期动力学演化规律。 "本研究的撞击通量分析表明，月球晚期重轰炸期间的撞击通量是呈渐变衰减趋势的，并不支持40 亿—38亿年间撞击通量激增的假说。"徐义刚强调，嫦娥六号样品的研究将持续推动人类重新认识地月 系统的演化。 记者20日从中国科学院广州地球化学研究所获悉，中国科学院院士、中国科学院广州地球化学研究 所研究员徐义刚团队通过对嫦娥六号月壤样品的高精度年代学研究，首次精确测定月球阿波罗盆地形成 于41.6亿年前。这一发现为揭示月球遭受太阳系内"撞击风暴"，即晚期重轰炸提供了关键证据。当日， 由该团队领衔的相关研 ...