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the key
Meanwhile, the discovery suggests a possible water source for lunar
explorers. By processing the hydroxyl-rich minerals, future astronauts
could, indeed, find a way to squeeze water out of a stone.
--- how to do it effectively!

from https://www.sciencealert.com/scientists-discover-signs-of-water-all-over-the-moons-surface

Scientists Discover Signs of Water All Over The Moon's Surface
Space
22 September 2024
ByMichelle Starr
a photograph of lunar craters at the terminator, taken from orbit. Deep shadows accentuate the stark drama of the lunar landscape
A photograph of craters at the lunar terminator, taken from orbit during
the Apollo 12 mission. (NASA)
The Moon might be a bit of a dark horse when it comes to water.

According to a new analysis of mineralogy maps, water and hydroxyl rCo
another molecule made up of hydrogen and oxygen rCo can be found in
multiple locations across all lunar latitudes and terrains, even where
the Sun shines down most powerfully.

It's a discovery that has multiple implications. It can help us
understand the Moon's geological history and ongoing processes, and
inform future crewed missions to Earth's satellite.

"Future astronauts may be able to find water even near the equator by exploiting these water-rich areas. Previously, it was thought that only
the polar region, and in particular, the deeply shadowed craters at the
poles were where water could be found in abundance," says planetary
scientist Roger Clark of the Planetary Science Institute.

"Knowing where water is located not only helps to understand lunar
geologic history, but also where astronauts may find water in the future."

The Moon seems pretty dry and devoid of moisture, and in one sense it
is. There is no liquid water pooling on the surface rCo no lakes, puddles,
or rivers. But studies are increasingly showing that the Moon has plenty
of water tucked away.

Previous studies into where all the water might be hiding suggested that
a huge amount could be deep in lunar craters, particularly at high
latitudes. These deep pockets are never touched by the direct light and
heat of the Sun, which means they may be harboring deposits of ice
several meters thick.

But other recent work has found that other parts of the Moon could have
water, too. And now, the work of Clark and his colleagues supports this finding. Water and hydroxyl rCo consisting of one oxygen atom and one
hydrogen atom rCo appear to be pretty abundant on the Moon, bound up in
the minerals that form the rocks and dirt on the surface of the Moon.


Images from the Moon Mineralogy Mapper in black and white (top) and color-coded for different water-containing minerals (bottom). The bluer
color indicates feldspars, with more water and hydroxyl found towards
the poles. (NASA/PSI/R. Clark)
The researchers used data from the Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3)
instrument on the Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft, which orbited the Moon in
2008 and 2009, collecting spectroscopic images of the Moon. This data
recorded the infrared light reflected by the Moon, looking for colors on
the spectrum consistent with water and hydroxyl.

The researchers found that water and hydroxyl can be found across all latitudes on the Moon, although the molecules appear to be less abundant
in lunar mares. But the water-rich rocks that are excavated during
impacts can be found wherever such impacts take place.

Water doesn't stay forever. The researchers found that water in the
lunar surface is is exposed in cratering events and then gradually
destroyed by radiation from solar wind over a timeframe of millions of
years. But this process leaves behind hydroxyl. Hydroxyl is also
produced by the solar wind, which deposits solar hydrogen on the surface
of the Moon, which can bind with oxygen there to produce the molecule.

"Putting all the evidence together, we see a lunar surface with complex geology with significant water in the sub-surface and a surface layer of hydroxyl," Clark says. "Both cratering and volcanic activity can bring water-rich materials to the surface, and both are observed in the lunar
data."

Riner Gamma Clem
The lunar swirl known as Reiner Gamma. (Public Domain)
The researchers also found that the water signature of pyroxene rCo a type
of igneous rock rCo changes depending on the angle of the sunlight hitting
it. This tidies up a lunar mystery: scientists had observed this
changing signature and not known what it meant. It seemed to suggest
that water was moving around on the Moon. It still could be, but not as
much as the pyroxene signature had seemed to indicate.

Finally, the team's maps give us some more information about another
weird Moon mystery rCo the lunar swirls. These are strange, swirling
patterns on the surface of the Moon, and scientists don't know what
makes them, although magnetism could play a role. Clark and his team
found that the swirls are very water-poor.

We don't know what that means for their formation mechanism, but this signature also occurs on parts of the lunar surface that don't have a
swirl pattern. These parts, the researchers think, could be ancient
swirls that have eroded, leaving only a telltale water signature to tell
us they were once there. And that could help us work out what the swirls actually are.

Meanwhile, the discovery suggests a possible water source for lunar
explorers. By processing the hydroxyl-rich minerals, future astronauts
could, indeed, find a way to squeeze water out of a stone.

The research has been published in The Planetary Science Journal.

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