Scientists have new information about the existence of water on the Moon

A new analysis of mineralogical maps shows that water and hydroxyl are found in several places on the Moon, including areas with direct exposure to the Sun, suggesting possible sources of water for future astronauts.

A new analysis of the mineralogical maps showed the presence of water and hydroxyl, a molecule made of hydrogen and oxygen, in various places on the Moon, including in the equatorial areas, Noi.md announces with reference to mediafax.ro

The discovery has significant implications when we talk about understanding the geological history of the Moon and for future manned missions, writes Science Alert, according to a study initially published in The Planetary Science Journal.

Planetary scientist Roger Clark, from the Institute of Planetary Sciences, said that astronauts could find water even near the equator, contrary to previous opinions that indicated that it was only in the polar regions. “Knowing where water is located not only helps to understand lunar geological history, but also indicates where astronauts might find water in the future,” Clark explained, according to the quoted source. The data were obtained from the Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3) instrument of the Chandrayaan-1 mission, which orbited the Moon between 2008 and 2009. The analyzes showed that although liquid water does not exist on the lunar surface, water is present in lunar rocks and soil , having a lower concentration in the lunar seas