Roughly a year after water molecules were first discovered on the moon, scientists last week announced that water is present in much greater quantities there than had originally been thought. Specifically, not only is the soil within the moon’s shadowy craters “rich in useful materials” — including pure ice crystals — but the moon is chemically active and even has a water cycle. The findings derive from a full analysis of the plume of debris that resulted last fall when NASA’s LCROSS and a spent rocket stage went hurtling into the Cabeus crater at the Moon’s south pole.
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Scientists Contemplate Water Factory on the Moon
Posted by: Katherine Noyes October 25, 2010 02:37 PMRoughly a year after water molecules were first discovered on the moon, scientists last week announced that water is present in much greater quantities there than had originally been thought. Specifically, not only is the soil within the moon’s shadowy craters “rich in useful materials” — including pure ice crystals — but the moon is chemically active and even has a water cycle. The findings derive from a full analysis of the plume of debris that resulted last fall when NASA’s LCROSS and a spent rocket stage went hurtling into the Cabeus crater at the Moon’s south pole.