Scientists have created a map of water on the moon

The particular location of the water can tell us about how water appeared on Earth.

In 2009, researchers from the brown University announced the discovery of water on the moon. In the summer of 2017 Ralph Milliken (Ralph Milliken) and Shuai Li (Shuai Li) presented an analysis of the composition of minerals from the lunar surface and came to the conclusion that the water was delivered to the surface from the bowels of the satellite during the period when the Moon was still volcanic activity.

In the new study, the researchers compiled a detailed map showing the amount of water expected to be in the lunar soil.

The map is based on the data collected by the spectrometer Moon Mineralogy Mapper. This is one of the instruments of the space probe Chandrayaan-1, launched in 2008. Water on the surface of the moon not so much in a relatively “wet” the polar regions, its concentration reaches 500-750 ppm (ppm). The amount of water in the soil can vary depending on the time of day. In the lunar “afternoon” some areas are much drier, the difference in concentration of water in different periods may be up to 200 ppm.

Says lead author Shuai Li: “Traces of water are present virtually everywhere on the lunar surface, not only in the polar regions, as previously reported. The amount of water increases as it approaches the poles and slightly varies depending on the type of terrain”.

Researchers believe that such an arrangement could talk about how the water appeared on the surface of the moon. According to them, this pattern may be related to the influence of the solar wind — the stream of ionized particles that can participate in the formation of individual hydroxyl groups and water molecules. Earlier, a similar hypothesis is expressed by French scientists. In some points near the equator the amount of water was relatively high. Researchers believe that this water could be brought to the surface from the bowels of the moon, as suggested by their previous work.

Scientists believe that the map will be the basis of further studies of the lunar surface. It will help to assess whether it is appropriate to extract water from lunar soil, using it for fuel production or as drinking water for astronauts on future lunar bases.

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