What is Ejecta halo?

About Ejecta Halo:

• The Vikram lander of the Chandrayaan-3 mission landed near the south pole of the moon.
• During the action of descent stage thrusters and the consequent landing, a significant amount of lunar surficial epi regolith material got ejected, resulting in a reflectance anomaly or ejecta halo”,
• Scientists from Indian Space Research Organisation estimate that about 2.06 tonnes of lunar epi regolith were ejected and displaced over an area of 108.4 m² around the landing site
• Ejecta halo is an irregular, bright patch surrounding the lander.
• Significance:
  • This discovery sheds light on the behaviour of lunar materials during such events.
  • It opens up new avenues for research and understanding lunar geology.

What is Regolith?

• It is a blanket of unconsolidated, loose, heterogeneous superficial deposits covering solid rock.
• Epiregolith is lunar rocks and soil, or regolith, or Moon dust.