Water on the Moon maybe be more than previously thought
Recommended for Middle Grades
Two new studies say that there may be far more water on the Moon than previously thought.
In the first study, it says that the Moon holds water, even in sunny areas.
Scientists believe that the water might be trapped in glass beads or another substance. This protects it from the harsh lunar environment.
For now, the amount of water detected is very less. As a comparison, the Sahara desert has 100 times the amount of water than what was detected in the lunar soil.
Researchers used data from NASA’s Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) Airborne Telescope for this study. SOFIA is a telescope to study space that is kept inside and flown around on an aeroplane.
The second study looked at the Moon’s polar regions. This is a place that does not see sunlight. Previously, water has been discovered in large craters in the same region.
Scientists found proof that the region has billions of micro-craters (about the size of a coin) that could each have a tiny amount of water ice.
These micro-craters are distributed across both the northern and southern poles. They are very cold, having temperatures around -160 degrees Celsius.
High-resolution images were used from NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) for this study. LRO is a robotic mission mapping the Moon’s surface.
All these sources of water on the Moon could someday be used by astronauts.
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