regolith
noun
reg·o·lith ˈre-gə-ˌlith 
: unconsolidated residual or transported material that overlies the solid rock on the earth, moon, or a planet
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web The next crew to set foot on the dusty regolith, for example, will not be solely composed of white men; NASA has promised that the group will include the first woman and the first person of color on the moon. 
Marina Koren, The Atlantic, 6 Sep. 2022 The rapid melting and cooling caused by micrometeorite impacts on the regolith creates small globs of glassy material. John Timmer, Ars Technica, 12 May 2022 This helps reduce the amount of potentially harmful lunar regolith, or moon dust, that is tracked back inside. Jonathan O'callaghan, Scientific American, 14 July 2022 Other experiments scheduled for launch in the next six years will study how spacecraft landings affect lunar regolith, scouring spacecraft and habitats. Rebecca Boyle, Scientific American, 28 July 2022 The firm, Lunar Resources, is developing technology to extract iron, aluminum, magnesium, and silicon from the Moon's regolith. Eric Berger, Ars Technica, 21 Jan. 2022 But new research shows that something can grow in regolith: a weed called mouse-ear cress (Arabidopsis thaliana). Lela Nargi, Washington Post, 7 June 2022 Working with such tiny quantities, the researchers grew a miniature regolith garden in their laboratory. Bernhard Warner, Fortune, 7 June 2022 The seedlings failed to truly thrive in regolith alone, however, indicating that future lunar farmers will need to fertilize their soil before planting crops. Joanna Thompson, Scientific American, 2 June 2022 See More
Marina Koren, The Atlantic, 6 Sep. 2022 The rapid melting and cooling caused by micrometeorite impacts on the regolith creates small globs of glassy material. John Timmer, Ars Technica, 12 May 2022 This helps reduce the amount of potentially harmful lunar regolith, or moon dust, that is tracked back inside. Jonathan O'callaghan, Scientific American, 14 July 2022 Other experiments scheduled for launch in the next six years will study how spacecraft landings affect lunar regolith, scouring spacecraft and habitats. Rebecca Boyle, Scientific American, 28 July 2022 The firm, Lunar Resources, is developing technology to extract iron, aluminum, magnesium, and silicon from the Moon's regolith. Eric Berger, Ars Technica, 21 Jan. 2022 But new research shows that something can grow in regolith: a weed called mouse-ear cress (Arabidopsis thaliana). Lela Nargi, Washington Post, 7 June 2022 Working with such tiny quantities, the researchers grew a miniature regolith garden in their laboratory. Bernhard Warner, Fortune, 7 June 2022 The seedlings failed to truly thrive in regolith alone, however, indicating that future lunar farmers will need to fertilize their soil before planting crops. Joanna Thompson, Scientific American, 2 June 2022 See More Word History
Etymology
Greek rhēgos blanket + English -lith; akin to Greek rhezein to dye — more at raga
First Known Use
1897, in the meaning defined above