While analyzing soil samples brought back from the Moon, Chinese scientists have discovered water molecules alongside minerals present in the samples.
According to CNN, the finding of water on the Moon is not an entirely new discovery. Previously, spacecraft from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and India were reported to have found what was believed to be water on the Moon’s surface. Last year, Chinese scientists also discovered water trapped in glass beads scattered across the Moon.
The Chang’e 5 lander touched down in Inner Mongolia, Northern China, completing its mission to explore the Moon on December 17, 2020. (Photo: THX/TTXVN).
However, according to scientists, this latest discovery marks the first time they have found water in the form of H2O molecules in the samples.
Researchers carefully examined the soil samples collected by China’s Chang’e 5 probe. In 2020, the spacecraft landed on the Moon’s surface and found a “transparent prismatic crystal” that is nearly as wide as a human hair, referred to as ULM-1.
According to a study published on July 16 in the journal Nature Astronomy, the ULM-1 crystal (with the chemical formula (NH4)MgCl3·6H2O) consists of about 41% water, with ammonia fragments helping to stabilize the H2O molecules despite the extreme temperature changes on the Moon.
The study concluded that this type of water could be a “potential resource for life on the Moon.”
This discovery is the latest in China’s extensive efforts to become a dominant space power, with greater ambitions such as establishing a research base on the Moon.
“The discovery of a water-retaining mineral at the landing site of the Chang’e 5 is quite intriguing and will help us better understand the rock vapor reactions in the Moon’s crust and surface,” explained David A. Kring, a senior scientist at the Lunar and Planetary Institute in Texas.
According to Yuqi Qian, a planetary geologist at the University of Hong Kong, there are three forms of water on the Moon, including water molecules, the compound we define as H2O; frozen ice; and a molecular compound known as hydroxyl.
Previous findings indicate that water existed on the Moon during past volcanic eruptions. This means that water is available within the Moon and has existed since the Moon’s formation.
Only in recent years have scientists discovered water, ice, and water molecules primarily located at the Moon’s dark and cold poles, where sunlight does not reach. A recent study also showed that water or hydroxyl could be trapped in glass beads scattered across the Moon’s surface, and solar wind could convert hydroxyl (chemical formula OH) into water, or H2O.
However, with current technology, extracting water on the Moon remains a top challenge. Scientists assess that due to the rugged rocky terrain, the Moon’s poles are very challenging locations for humans to exploit water. Additionally, water molecules may not be stable in various regions of the Moon and could evaporate at lower latitudes, where temperatures can exceed 100 degrees Celsius.
