Water Ice Confirmed on the Moon — What does this mean for the Future of Space Travel?
Water has been confirmed on the surface of the Moon for the first time, NASA reports. The deposits, in the form of solid ice, have been detected near both the northern and southern poles of our planetary companion.
The Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft confirmed water ice in craters at the south pole of the Moon, as well as isolated patches near the northernmost regions. The Moon Mineralogy Mapper instrument (M3) instrument discovered this ice is concentrated in areas where permanent shadows prevent sunlight from reaching, protecting the frozen surface from melting. Earlier findings suggested the presence of water ice at the poles, but those measurements could have been explained by areas of highly-reflective crust on the lunar surface.
“M3, aboard the Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft, launched in 2008 by the Indian Space Research Organization, was uniquely equipped to confirm the presence of solid ice on the Moon. It collected data that not only picked up the reflective properties we’d expect from ice, but was able to directly measure the distinctive way its molecules absorb infrared light, so it can differentiate between liquid water or vapor and solid ice,” NASA stated in a press release announcing the findings.
