Planets and Moons  ID: 11756

Water On The Moon

Story by Kerry Klein | Visualizations by Ernie Wright Released on March 17, 2015
Download Options
A NASA spacecraft has found evidence of water ice buried beneath the lunar surface.
While probes and orbiters search the far-flung corners of the solar system for water, one spacecraft holds evidence that it could be hiding right in our backyard—on the moon. Data from NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) suggest that water ice lies frozen near the surface at the moon’s cold, dark poles. LRO looks for water using its Lunar Explorer Neutron Detector (LEND) instrument, which detects the presence of hydrogen atoms by counting neutrons released from the moon’s soils. The measurements allow scientists to create maps that show areas of the moon that are rich in hydrogen, the main ingredient of water. Since LRO’s launch in 2009, the mission has identified likely deposits of water ice in a handful of craters on the moon’s south pole, including shadowy regions that have gone without sunlight for millions or even billions of years. Watch the video to learn more.
Download Options
Find out how LRO uses its LEND instrument to look for water on the moon in this video.
Download Options
This visualization shows LRO measurements of slow and fast neutrons over the moon’s south pole from July 2009 to July 2011.
Download Options
Areas of the moon's south pole with possibly high deposits of frozen water are colored blue in this map.
Download Options
LRO observations indicate that Cabeus, Shoemaker and Faustini craters show great potential for containing subsurface ice.
 

Related Stories

Water on the Moon
LEND Looks for Water at the South Pole
LEND: The Lunar Neutron Counter

Story Credits

Lead Visualizer/Animator:
Ernie Wright (USRA)

Visualizer/Animator:
Chris Smith (Self)

Video Editor:
Chris Smith (Self)

Narration:
Chris Smith (Self)

Narrator:
Chris Smith (Self)

Producers:
Chris Smith (Self)
Dan Gallagher (USRA)
Silvia Stoyanova (USRA)

Lead Scientists:
Tim McClanahan (NASA)
John Keller (NASA/GSFC)
Richard Vondrak (NASA/GSFC)

Lead Writer:
Kerry Klein (USRA)

Please give credit for this item to:
NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center

Short URL to share this page:
https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/11756

Keywords:
SVS >> App
NASA Science >> Planets and Moons