Scientists have discovered that there is water everywhere on the moon. Analysis of moon rock suggests that a chemically altered form of water is bound up within a volcanic lunar mineral. The findings lead experts to believe that water is widespread on both the outside and inside of the moon.And the discovery means that it would be far easier for humans to one day set up a space station on the moon's surface. Tapping a local supply of water would be a lot more convenient than ferrying it from Earth while it can also be split into its two component gases. Hydrogen can be turned into rocket fuel to enable astronauts to explore other planets in the solar system and oxygen is vital for breathing. To be precise, the scientists found evidence of hydroxide ions - negatively charged molecules identical to those of water but missing one hydrogen atom. The hydroxide was discovered in apatite, a calcium phosphate mineral, the researchers reported in the journal Nature. The discovery was made after US researchers examined a basalt rock underlying the moon's surface that was formed by lava flows billions of years ago and brought back to Earth by the 1971 Apollo 14 mission. Professor George Rossman, of the California Institute of Technology, said: 'If you heat up the apatite, the hydroxyl ions will 'decompose' and come out as water.' (Daily Mail)Thursday 22 July 2010
Scientists find even more evidence of water on the moon
Scientists have discovered that there is water everywhere on the moon. Analysis of moon rock suggests that a chemically altered form of water is bound up within a volcanic lunar mineral. The findings lead experts to believe that water is widespread on both the outside and inside of the moon.And the discovery means that it would be far easier for humans to one day set up a space station on the moon's surface. Tapping a local supply of water would be a lot more convenient than ferrying it from Earth while it can also be split into its two component gases. Hydrogen can be turned into rocket fuel to enable astronauts to explore other planets in the solar system and oxygen is vital for breathing. To be precise, the scientists found evidence of hydroxide ions - negatively charged molecules identical to those of water but missing one hydrogen atom. The hydroxide was discovered in apatite, a calcium phosphate mineral, the researchers reported in the journal Nature. The discovery was made after US researchers examined a basalt rock underlying the moon's surface that was formed by lava flows billions of years ago and brought back to Earth by the 1971 Apollo 14 mission. Professor George Rossman, of the California Institute of Technology, said: 'If you heat up the apatite, the hydroxyl ions will 'decompose' and come out as water.' (Daily Mail)