Possibility of More Water on the Moon's Surface... "Could Be Used for Exploration Drinking Water and Fuel"

[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] New research suggests that there is more water on the Moon than previously known and that it may be easier to obtain. Along with findings that water (H₂O) molecular spectral signals were clearly detected on sunlit areas of the lunar surface for the first time, the possibility has been raised that there may be more ice-form water in the permanently shadowed regions near the lunar south pole than expected.

According to Bloomberg and other sources on the 26th (local time), the two research results were published in the scientific journal Nature Astronomy on the same day. Foreign media evaluated that both studies indicate that securing water on the Moon could be easier than anticipated.

According to Nature, a research team led by Dr. Casey Honniball of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center analyzed lunar observation data from the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA), which operates an infrared telescope mounted on a modified Boeing 747 aircraft, and detected spectral signals of water molecules.

The team estimated that water molecules are abundantly present in the high-latitude regions of the southern hemisphere and mostly exist between lunar surface dust and other particles. Based on this, the researchers concluded that water molecules can endure the harsh lunar environment.

Additionally, the so-called "cold traps" that accumulate ice molecules in the permanently shadowed regions near the lunar south pole, where water could be preserved in ice form, are estimated to be more numerous than previously thought. A research team led by Dr. Paul Hayne, an astrophysics assistant professor at the University of Colorado Boulder, estimated that cold traps exist in various sizes and shapes, covering about 15,000 square miles around both the south and north poles?more than twice the previously estimated area.

The team explained that some cold traps are as small as 1 cm in diameter and that "astronauts could find and utilize 1-meter-sized shadows nearby without having to venture deep into the shadowed areas of large impact craters in search of ice." However, the study did not confirm whether the permanently shadowed regions actually contain ice, adding that proving this would require astronauts or others to visit these areas directly.

Water is a valuable resource that can be used as drinking water on lunar exploration sites and can also be split to extract hydrogen for rocket fuel. Dr. Hayne stated, "If these research results are correct, it will be easier to access drinking water, rocket fuel, and everything NASA requires water for."

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