NASA Confirms Water Molecules on Lunar Surface
Topic: Technology News
Posted on Fri, 25 Sep 2009 06:00:00 CDT | by Luigi Lugmayr
Yesterday we reported that there is evidence of Water on the Moon. NASA has now detailed what has been found.
NASA scientists have discovered water molecules in the polar regions of the moon. Instruments aboard three separate spacecraft revealed water molecules in amounts that are greater than predicted, but still relatively small. Hydroxyl, a molecule consisting of one oxygen atom and one hydrogen atom, also was found in the lunar soil.
The confirmation of elevated water molecules and hydroxyl at these concentrations in the moon's polar regions raises new questions about its origin and effect on the mineralogy of the moon. Answers to these questions will be studied and debated for years to come.
"Water ice on the moon has been something of a holy grail for lunar scientists for a very long time," said Jim Green, director of the Planetary Science Division at NASA Headquarters in Washington. "This surprising finding has come about through the ingenuity, perseverance and international cooperation between NASA and the India Space Research Organization."
"For silicate bodies, such features are typically attributed to water and hydroxyl-bearing materials," said Carle Pieters, M3's principal investigator from Brown University, Providence, R.I. "When we say 'water on the moon,' we are not talking about lakes, oceans or even puddles. Water on the moon means molecules of water and hydroxyl that interact with molecules of rock and dust specifically in the top millimeters of the moon's surface.
The water on the moon is not something you can actually drink, which of course sucks for manned moon bases.
More details in this Nasa report.
Posted on Fri, 25 Sep 2009 06:00:00 CDT | by Luigi Lugmayr
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