NASA has just released information about its exciting new project to find water on the moon.

The moon is a dry, inhospitable place. During the lunar day its boiling hot surface temperatures quickly evaporate any exposed surface water or ice which breaks away from the moon’s weak gravity and floats off into space. The only possible place ice could hide would be in massive abyssal craters, over two miles deep. Some corners of these craters are kept in shadow all year round so they are -400 degrees Fahrenheit, cold enough to freeze moon water.

Later this year a robotic probe called the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter or “LRO” is going to search the Moon’s poles for water ice. It will orbit the Moon for one year collecting data on the lunar terrain. Tantalizing titbits from previous robotic orbiters suggest that these craters might stow away up to one cubic kilometre of water ice. They found indirect, uncertain evidence of some hydrogen bearing compound, possibly water, at the Moon’s poles.

It is exciting to think that we will soon know once and for all whether the deep, dark shadow of the Moon’s craters hide water. LRO will peer into the craters and look for starlight reflected from ice crystals. Starlight is bright in the ultraviolet spectrum, so the LRO will be looking out for the characteristic fingerprint of water ice reflections as it scans the surface of the moon.

Another instrument on the LRO will measure the neutrons radiating from the surface of the moon. Cosmic rays from deep space strike the lunar surface and create neutrons that stream back into space, but ice crystals would absorb some of these. If LRO flies over a large patch of icy soil hidden in a dark crater it would record a dip in the number of neutrons radiating from below.

The final tool the LRO will carry is called a ‘Diviner’ which will map the temperature of the lunar surface. If the other two instruments find evidence of water ice then the Diviner will be able to determine whether the craters are actually cold enough to stop the ice evaporating away.

Finding water would be the first step to building manned stations on the moon. Having ice to mine nearby would provide much more than just drinking water. Lunar homesteaders could use the water to grow plants for food. Splitting water molecules with electricity from solar panels would produce oxygen to replenish the outpost’s air. It would also produce hydrogen gas, an excellent rocket fuel that could power the astronauts return vehicle.

Building a moon-base sounds pretty fun, but I can’t help but wonder how much value there is in it apart from as a publicity stunt for science and humanity. Manned missions to the moon and mars would teach us about how the human body reacts to such unfamiliar surroundings, but I wonder whether we ought to be focusing on other areas of astronomy instead. Friends who work in astrophysics have spoken about the current funding crisis and I wonder if the absurd amounts of cash spent on sending people into space couldn’t be better spent elsewhere. Space and the final frontier have always had a romantic appeal and putting people into space is undoubtedly a political move as much as a scientific one.

Find out about the NASA space missions here:

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/exploration/mmb/index.html