In a discovery that holds the breathtaking prospect of finding key support for life, NASA’s observatory has for the first time detected water on the surface of the shining Moon.
The Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy, known as SOFIA, has confirmed, for the first time, water on the sunlit surface of the Moon, NASA said.
This discovery indicates that water may be distributed across the lunar surface, and not limited to cold, shadowed places, the space agency says.
The discovery of the precious life source in deep space is a hopeful sign ahead of the 2024 mission that would seek to people the Moon.
“Whether the water SOFIA found is easily accessible for use as a resource remains to be determined. Under NASA’s Artemis program, the agency is eager to learn all it can about the presence of water on the Moon in advance of sending the first woman and next man to the lunar surface in 2024 and establishing a sustainable human presence there by the end of the decade.”
The discovery points to just a small amount of water, the agency said.
This illustration highlights the Moon’s Clavius Crater with an illustration depicting water trapped in the lunar soil there, along with an image of NASA’s Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) that found sunlit lunar water. Credits: NASA/Daniel Rutter
Illustrating the point NASA believes that the Sahara Desert has 100 times the amount of water than what SOFIA detected in the lunar soil.
“Despite the small amounts, the discovery raises new questions about how water is created and how it persists on the harsh, airless lunar surface.”
While announcing the unprecedented discovery, NASA quoted scientists about importance of having water on the moon.
“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.”
SOFIA is a modified Boeing 747SP aircraft that allows astronomers to study the solar system and beyond in ways that are not possible with ground-based telescopes. Molecular water, H2O, was found in Clavius Crater, one of the largest craters visible from Earth in the Moon’s southern hemisphere.
This discovery indicates that water may be distributed across the lunar surface, and not limited to cold, shadowed places, the space agency said.
“It was, in fact, the first time SOFIA has looked at the Moon, and we weren’t even completely sure if we would get reliable data, but questions about the Moon’s water compelled us to try,” said Naseem Rangwala, SOFIA’s project scientist at NASA’s Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley.
“It’s incredible that this discovery came out of what was essentially a test, and now that we know we can do this, we’re planning more flights to do more observations.”
SOFIA’s follow-up flights will look for water in additional sunlit locations and during different lunar phases to learn more about how the water is produced, stored, and moved across the Moon. The data will add to the work of future Moon missions, such as NASA’s Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover to create the first water resource maps of the Moon for future human space exploration.
