The ‘CLASS’ X-ray spectrometer on the Chandrayaan-2 orbiter has mapped the amount of sodium on the Moon for the first time, according to the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO). The X-ray Fluorescence Spectrometer Chandrayaan-1 (C1XS) detected sodium from its characteristic line in X-rays, opening the possibility of mapping the amount of sodium on the Moon.
In recent work published in “The Astrophysical Journal Letters,” Chandrayaan-2 mapped the amount of sodium on the moon for the first time using CLASS (Chandrayaan-2 Large Area Soft X-ray Spectrometer), the national space agency said in a statement on Friday. “The CLASS class, built at ISRO’s U R Rao Satellite Center in Bengaluru, provides pure sodium series signatures due to its high sensitivity and performance,” the statement said. The study found that part of the signal could come from a thin veneer of sodium atoms loosely bound to the lunar grains.
These sodium atoms can be driven from the surface by the solar wind or ultraviolet radiation more easily than if they were part of lunar minerals. Also shown is the diurnal variation of surface sodium, which would explain the continuous supply of atoms to the exosphere and its maintenance, the statement said.
