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'Large amounts' of water on Moon 'Large amounts' of water on Moon
(19 minutes later)
Nasa's experiment last month to find water on the Moon was a major success, US scientists have announced.Nasa's experiment last month to find water on the Moon was a major success, US scientists have announced.
The space agency smashed a rocket and probe into a large crater at the lunar south pole, hoping to kick up ice. The space agency smashed a rocket and a probe into a large crater at the lunar south pole, hoping to kick up ice.
Scientists who have studied the data now say instruments trained on the impact plume saw copious quantities of water vapour.Scientists who have studied the data now say instruments trained on the impact plume saw copious quantities of water vapour.
One researcher described this as the equivalent of "a dozen two-gallon buckets" of water.One researcher described this as the equivalent of "a dozen two-gallon buckets" of water.
The 1.6km-high plume of debris was kicked up by the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) last month when it crashed into Cabeus crater. "We didn't just find a little bit; we found a significant amount," said Anthony Colaprete, chief scientist for the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) mission.
A Centaur rocket stage crashed first, followed by a smaller probe after it had sent measurements of the first impact to Earth. October's experiment involved driving a 2,200kg Centaur rocket stage into the 100km-wide Cabeus crater, a permanently shadowed depression at the Moon's far south.
It punched a separate 20-30m wide depression in Cabeus. At the time, scientists were hoping for a big plume of debris some 10km high which could be seen by Earth telescopes.
"We're unlocking the mysteries of our nearest neighbour and, by extension, the Solar System," said Michael Wargo, chief lunar scientist at Nasa's headquarters in Washington DC. The actual debris cloud was much smaller, about 1.6km high, but sufficiently large to betray the evidence researchers were seeking.
"The Moon harbours many secrets, and LCROSS has added a new layer to our understanding." The spectrometers on the LCROSS probe that followed the rocket into the crater detected water-ice, water vapour and the OH molecule, which arises when water is broken apart in sunlight.
Major find "We were able to match the spectra from LCROSS data only when we inserted the spectra for water," Dr Colaprete said.
The identification of water-ice in the impact plume is important for purely scientific reasons, but also because a supply of water on the Moon would be a vital resource for future human exploration.
The impact into Cabeus threw up a large plume composed of water vapour and debris, which rose quickly.
An additional curtain of lunar debris spread out laterally after the impact.
"We are ecstatic," said Anthony Colaprete, chief scientist for LCROSS at Nasa's Ames Research Center in California.
"Multiple lines of evidence show water was present in both the high-angle vapour plume and the ejecta curtain created by the LCROSS Centaur impact. The concentration and distribution of water and other substances requires further analysis, but it is safe to say Cabeus holds water."
The team compared spectral data for materials seen in the plume with known data signatures for water.
"We were able to match the spectra from LCROSS data only when we inserted the spectra for water," Colaprete said.
"No other reasonable combination of other compounds that we tried matched the observations. The possibility of contamination from the Centaur also was ruled out.""No other reasonable combination of other compounds that we tried matched the observations. The possibility of contamination from the Centaur also was ruled out."
Peter Schultz, a professor of geological sciences at Brown University and a co-investigator on the LCROSS mission, said: "What's really exciting is we've only hit one spot. It's kind of like when you're drilling for oil. Once you find it one place, there's a greater chance you'll find more nearby." The total quantity of H2O spied by the instruments was about 100kg. It came out of a 20m-30m wide hole dug up the impacting Centaur rocket.
Dr Colaprete said a large debris plume rose at least one or two kilometres in altitude. It stayed just below the crater rim, which may have prevented astronomers from observing it from Earth. Peter Schultz, from Brown University and a co-investigator on the LCROSS mission, said: "What's really exciting is we've only hit one spot. It's kind of like when you're drilling for oil. Once you find it in one place, there's a greater chance you'll find more nearby."
In September, data from three spacecraft, including India's Chandrayaan probe, shows that very fine films of H2O coat the particles that make up the lunar dirt. The regular surface of the Moon as seen from Earth is drier than any desert on our planet. But researchers have long speculated that some permanently shadowed places might harbour considerable stores of water, perhaps delivered by impacting comets billions of years ago.
Scientists behind the finding speculated that the water seen elsewhere on the lunar surface might migrate to the slightly cooler poles, much as water vapour on Earth will condense on a cold surface. If future investigations find the quantities to be particularly large, this water could become a useful resource for any astronauts who might base themselves at the lunar poles.
This cold sink effect could result in vast quantities of water being retained in permanently shadowed craters in the form of ice, especially if it has been supplemented by water delivered by comets. They could use it as drinking water, or to make rocket fuel.
In September, data from three spacecraft, including India's Chandrayaan probe, showed that very fine films of H2O coat the particles that make up lunar soil.
Scientists behind that finding speculated that this water might migrate to the slightly cooler poles, much as water vapour on Earth will condense on a cold surface.
This cold sink effect could be supplementing any water delivered by comets, they said.