BENGALURU/WASHINGTON, Aug 22 (Reuters) – The Indian Space Agency is about to land a rover on the moon’s south pole, which could advance India’s space ambitions and become one of the moon’s most valuable resources. A mission that has the potential to expand our knowledge of the potential lunar water ice.
Here’s what’s known about the existence of frozen water on the moon, and why space agencies and private companies see it as a key to the potential for lunar colonization, lunar mining, and Mars exploration. To do.
How did scientists find water on the moon?
In the 1960s, before the first Apollo landings, scientists speculated that water might exist on the moon. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, samples brought back for analysis by Apollo crews appeared to be dry.
In 2008, researchers at Brown University used new techniques to re-examine lunar samples and found hydrogen in tiny beads of volcanic glass. In 2009, his NASA instruments aboard the Indian Space Research Organization’s Chandrayaan 1 probe detected water on the surface of the Moon.
That same year, another NASA probe that reached Antarctica discovered water ice beneath the moon’s surface. NASA’s previous mission, the 1998 lunar rover, had found evidence of the highest concentrations of water ice in shadowed craters in Antarctica.
Why is lunar water important?
Scientists are intrigued by pockets of ancient water ice because they may provide a record of the origins of lunar volcanoes, comets and asteroids, and oceans.
Water ice, if present in sufficient quantity, could provide a source of drinking water for lunar exploration and help cool instruments.
It can also be broken down to produce hydrogen for fuel and oxygen for breathing to support missions to Mars and lunar mining.
The 1967 United Nations Outer Space Treaty prohibits any nation from claiming ownership of the moon. There is no provision to suspend commercial activities.
Twenty-seven nations have signed the Artemis Accords, a US-led effort to establish a set of principles for lunar exploration and use of its resources. China and Russia have not signed.
What makes Antarctica particularly troublesome?
Attempts to land on the moon have failed before. Russia’s Luna 25 was scheduled to land in Antarctica this week, but it spun out of control on approach and crashed on Sunday.
Antarctica is far from the equatorial regions targeted by previous missions, including the manned Apollo landings, and is riddled with craters and deep trenches.
ISRO’s Chandrayaan-3 mission is on track for a landing attempt on Wednesday, the space agency said. India’s previous mission failed to land safely near Chandrayaan 3’s target area in 2019.
The US and China are both planning missions to Antarctica.
Reported by Nivedita Bhattacharye in Bangalore and Joey Roulette in Washington.Editing: Kevin Crolicky and Jerry Doyle
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