NASA has taken another look at the moon and they are sure that it has water on its surface. Since 2009 they have been suspecting that this is true, and a recent look has proved it. Their Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) is a camera mounted on a plane that got a clear shot at the moon. The camera found the water molecules in one of the biggest craters on the moon, Clavius Crater.

This new discovery could have serious effects on space travel in the future. For example, a lunar colony is much more likely. Moon exploration might happen sooner. NASA says that they will try to send another person to the moon by 2024. They are also thinking of making a safe and sustainable colony on the moon bye the end of the decade.

Even before this new discovery NASA had found ice on the moon but they weren’t sure if it was H2O or just a similar compound. They also never found any water on the warmer sunlit side. Now due to the SOFIA’s important observation we can be sure it’s the same water chemical we’ve always been around. Despite there being a very small amount it raises questions about how the water manages to stay on the lunar surface and how it got there.

https://www.cnet.com/features/nasa-telescope-uncovers-definitive-evidence-of-water-on-the-moon/

https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-s-sofia-discovers-water-on-sunlit-surface-of-moon/