The Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3) has taken a composite image of a region of moon about which very little was known and this has taken India's first lunar endeavor with the Chandrayaan to new heights.

Detailed compositional information regarding the moon is provided by the M3, which has been designed by the jet Propulsion Laboratory, USA. The name of the region which was mapped recently is Orientale Basin. New insight into the composition of the region is provided by the different wavelengths of light, captured in the image.

"Our ability to now identify and map the composition of the surface in geologic context provides a new level of detail needed to explore and understand Earth's nearest neighbor," informed Carle Pieters, the instrument's principal investigator, from Brown University via a statement.

Apart from providing new details on the form and structure of the region's surface, the image also revealed changes in rock and mineral composition and the abundance of iron-bearing minerals such as pyroxene. The scientists are also able to analyze the image, using color by the M3 apart from analyzing the length and width across an image.

The Chandrayaan has been equipped with 11 payloads, out which M3 is the one.