Scientists find water on the light side of the Moon

With water on the Moon, a new phase of space exploration may be possible

Today's expression: Cut down on
Explore more: Lesson #317
December 3, 2020:

NASA scientists have discovered water on the Moon. Until recently, researchers had only confirmed water in the sunlit portions. The implications of this discovery are enormous and could change the future of space exploration as we know it. Plus, learn what it means to “cut down on” something.

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Water on the Moon

Lesson summary

Hi there, welcome back to another Plain English lesson. I’m Jeff; the producer is JR; and this is lesson 317. The full and complete lesson is available at PlainEnglish.com/317.

Coming up today: NASA scientists have discovered water on the sunlit portions of the Moon. This follows a discovery a few years ago of water on the dark side of the Moon. We’ll talk about what exactly they found and what this could mean for the future of space exploration . The second half of the program is all about expressions, and today’s expression is “cut down on.” And JR has a song of the week.

Scientists discover water in sunlit regions of the Moon

NASA is confirming there is water on the Moon, and on more parts of the Moon than previously thought . Back in August 2018, researchers found significant ice deposits in the cold and dark areas of the Moon, including in cratered areas that are permanently shadowed . The question remained whether water could exist on the sunlit parts of Earth’s closest neighbor.

In October space researchers confirmed the presence of water on the Moon’s sunlit surface. This new breakthrough suggests that water, essential for life on Earth, is distributed across even more of the Moon’s surface . Researchers say they didn’t find puddles of water but instead found water molecules so widely dispersed that don’t even form what we traditionally think of as liquid water or ice.

Learning more about the newly discovered Moon water is important for America’s plans to explore the Moon and beyond. Why is that? Well, we know that water is essential for life here on Earth. If there’s water on the Moon, it could be recycled inside a lunar habitat or used for drinking water or bathing for people who may stay up there on scientific missions . In a more far-fetched scenario, it could also be used to help grow plants on the Moon, which could (possibly, some day) be used to feed astronauts.

But perhaps the biggest and most realistic impact could be for fueling rockets . The chemical components of water — hydrogen and oxygen — are two of the most important elements used to power rockets. And making rocket fuel out of the water on the Moon could drastically cut down on the cost of doing challenging missions farther off in space . Right now, rockets leaving Earth have to carry all the fuel they need with them for their whole journey. That limits how deep into space rockets can go. But with lunar ice, rockets might be able to land on the moon and refuel once they get there . If that were possible, they could reach even more distant locations in space.

That would make deep-space missions more feasible . Water from the Moon could be mined, broken apart into its components, transformed into rocket fuel , and transported to a lunar fuel station depot either on the Moon or in low Earth orbit. Then, rockets could refuel there instead of carrying all their propellant when they leave Earth.

I mentioned earlier that the water was dispersed and it wasn’t collecting in puddles or deposits . So how do we know it’s there? NASA used a tool called “SOFIA”— short for Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy to make the discovery. SOFIA is a modified Boeing 747 that goes as high as 45,000 feet up into the Earth’s atmosphere. The height is vital because it lets researchers gaze at objects in space without the visual disruption caused by water vapor in the Earth’s atmosphere.

To detect the water molecules, SOFIA used an infrared camera , which detects the heat of objects far away. For a time, researchers had suspected there was water on the Moon, but they were not able to tell whether what they were seeing was water or water’s close chemical cousin , hydroxy, or O-H. The advanced instrumentation on SOFIA allowed them to conclude that, yes, what they were seeing was indeed water.

Where was it hiding? Water can’t collect on the surface because of the extreme temperatures and the fact that the Moon doesn’t have much of an atmosphere. Without some type of protection, water would just be lost to space and not preserved on the surface of the Moon. But, that’s not what’s happening, water is forming and becoming trapped there.

The current thinking is that the water molecules are most likely stored in naturally occurring volcanic glass or sandwiched between microscopic grains of rock dust . The next step in the research would be to find out exactly how the water formed, and why it persists .

NASA is about to start follow-up observations on SOFIA. They are now hoping to map a majority of the Moon’s surface to determine where water exists and what its behavior is like.

Book recommendation

What an amazing discovery. Stop and think for a second about this. They were able to find water trapped in glass beads on the Moon. That is just incredible.

If you liked this topic and you’re looking for a good book to read in English, I would recommend reading “The Martian” by Andy Weir. It’s fiction, but it was written by a space scientist in his spare time, and many reviewers say the science is pretty solid . I would not be in a position to say, but I can tell you that it’s entertaining. It’s also a movie, but I think you’d like the book. “The Martian” by Andy Weir.

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Expression: Cut down on