NASA Finds Lots of Water on Moon

Rocket probe discovers large amounts of ice
By Nick McMaster,  Newser Staff
Posted Nov 13, 2009 1:28 PM CST
NASA Finds Lots of Water on Moon
This artist's rendering provided by NASA via Brown University shows the Centaur upper stage rocket separating from its shepherding spacecraft on a trajectory toward the moon.   (AP Photo/NASA)

A NASA probe has turned up water on the moon. Lots of water. “We practically tasted it with the impact,” said a geologist. The discovery—made last month after the space agency blasted the probe into the moon to study the debris—raises the chances of one day setting up a lunar outpost. What's more, the frozen water could hold clues to the origins of the universe.

Water has been found on the moon before, but in very small amounts and only bound to dirt particles. The presence of large quantities of ice will be helpful for astronauts participating in extended moonwalks planned for 2020—both for drinking and for conversion into hydrogen for rocket fuel, Space.com reports. (More lunar stories.)

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