There’s water on sunlit surface of Moon

The NASA’s Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) has confirmed, for the first time, water on the sunlit surface of the Moon. This discovery indicates that water may be distributed across the lunar surface, and not limited to cold, shadowed places, according to a statement by NASA.

NASA scientist on Monday said that though the moon lacks the bodies of liquid water that are a hallmark of Earth, the lunar water is more widespread than previously known, with water molecules trapped within mineral grains on the surface and more water is perhaps hidden in ice patches residing in permanent shadows. A team led by Casey Honniball of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Centre in Maryland detected molecular water on the lunar surface, trapped within natural glasses or between debris grains.

The SOFIA has detected water molecules (H2O) in Clavius Crater, one of the largest craters visible from Earth, located in the Moon’s southern hemisphere. Previous observations of the Moon’s surface detected some form of hydrogen, but were unable to distinguish between water and its close chemical relative, hydroxyl (OH).

“Data from this location reveal water in concentrations of 100 to 412 parts per million – roughly equivalent to a 12-ounce bottle of water – trapped in a cubic meter of soil spread across the lunar surface. The results are published in the latest issue of Nature Astronomy,” the statement read.

“We had indications that H2O – the familiar water we know - might be present on the sunlit side of the Moon,” said Paul Hertz, director of the Astrophysics Division in the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington.

“Now we know it is there. This discovery challenges our understanding of the lunar surface and raises intriguing questions about resources relevant for deep space exploration.”