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The Moon contains ice water, according to new “unequivocal detection data”, and it was also confirmed that on its surface there are numerous craters to which sunlight never reaches, where the ice could be trapped in a stable way.
Nature astronomy published two studies signed by American scientists, one of which points to the unequivocal detection of molecular water (H2O) on the Moon and the other suggests that approximately 40,000 square meters of its surface, of which 40% are in the south, have the capacity to retain water in calls cold traps.
Two years ago, signs of hydration had already been detected on the lunar surface, particularly around the South Pole, which possibly corresponded to the presence of water, but the method used could not differentiate whether it was molecular water (H2O) or hydroxyl ( radicals called OH).
In this new publication, a team led by Casey Honniball of the University of Hawaii, used data from the NASA’s Stratospheric Infrared Astronomy Observatory (Sofia), a Boeing 747SP aircraft modified to carry a reflecting telescope.
We detected water on the sunlit surface of the Moon for the first time! This suggests that the water may be distributed across the lunar surface, and is not limited to cool, shady places.
Tune in live for more information: https://t.co/t3AhWT3hNJ https://t.co/73u4hrX90V
– SOFIAtelescope (@SOFIAtelescope) October 26, 2020
The data were taken from Clavius crater, near the South Pole, which was observed by Sofia at a wavelength of six microns, at which molecular water produces a unique spectral signature.
Previous observations, at a length of three microns, indicated signs of water, which “still left an alternative explanation open”, but the new data “have no other explanation than the presence of molecular water”, said Ignasi Ribas, astrophysicist at the Institute of Space Studies of Catalonia (IEEC) and the Institute of Space Sciences of the CSIC.
Water, trapped within grains of dust or crystals, when excited by sunlight vibrates and emits it again at a wavelength of six microns.
“In practice, It is as if those areas of the Moon are brighter than they should at that wavelength, “adds Ribas, commenting on the article of which he is not a signatory.
Researchers estimate that the abundance in high southern latitudes is 100 to 400 grams of H2O per ton of regolith (the material from which the lunar surface is made) and the distribution of water in that small latitude range is the result of geology. local and “probably not a global phenomenon”.
This amount of water is much less than on Earth, “but it is more than zero,” says Ribas, who recalls that the conditions on the Moon are extreme so it is difficult to retain it as it evaporates and escapes.
He second study, Led by Paul Hayne of the University of Colorado Boulder, he examined the distribution on the lunar surface of zones in a state of eternal darkness, in which ice could be captured and remain stable.
“In cold traps the temperatures are so low that eThe ice would behave like a rock“If the water enters there” it will not go anywhere for a billion years, “says the scientist quoted by the university.
Although it cannot be proven that these cold traps actually contain ice reserves – “the only way to do that would be to go there in person or with rovers and dig,” says Hayne. the results “are promising” and future missions could shed even more light on the Moon’s water resources.
The study was done with data from NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter to assess a range of possible cold trap sizes, which may be much more common on the Moon’s surface than suggested in previous research.
The team also used mathematical tools to recreate what the lunar surface might look like on a very small scale, and the answer is that it would be “a little like a golf ball, “packed with small holes.
The study indicates that “micro” cold traps are hundreds or thousands of times more numerous than larger ones, which can be several kilometers long, and can be found at both poles.
The authors suggest that approximately 40,000 square meters of the lunar surface it has the ability to trap water, the presence of which may have implications for future lunar missions targeting access to these potential ice deposits.
“If we are right,” Hayne considered, “the water will be more accessible,” bearing in mind, in the future, the possible establishment of lunar bases.
The existence on the Moon of potentially usable water is a prospect “very interesting” and “exciting”Ribas points out, although time will tell if it can be used to help future lunar bases.
We detected water on the sunlit surface of the Moon for the first time! This suggests that the water may be distributed across the lunar surface and is not limited to cool, shady places.
Tune in live for more information: https://t.co/t3AhWT3hNJ https://t.co/73u4hrX90V
– SOFIAtelescope (@SOFIAtelescope) October 26, 2020
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