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jgo

(870 posts)
Mon Mar 27, 2023, 05:21 PM Mar 2023

Glass beads on moon's surface may hold billions of tonnes of water, scientists say

Source: The Guardian

Tiny glass beads strewn across the moon’s surface contain potentially billions of tonnes of water that could be extracted and used by astronauts on future lunar missions, researchers say.

The discovery is thought to be one of the most important breakthroughs yet for space agencies that have set their sights on building bases on the moon, as it means there could be a highly accessible source of not only water but also hydrogen and oxygen.

“This is one of the most exciting discoveries we’ve made,” said Mahesh Anand, a professor of planetary science and exploration at the Open University. “With this finding, the potential for exploring the moon in a sustainable manner is higher than it’s ever been.”

Tests on the glass particles revealed that together they contain substantial quantities of water, amounting to between 300m and 270bn tonnes across the entire moon’s surface.


Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/science/2023/mar/27/glass-beads-on-moon-surface-hold-billions-of-tonnes-of-water-scientists-say

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Glass beads on moon's surface may hold billions of tonnes of water, scientists say (Original Post) jgo Mar 2023 OP
Next up Nestle will be funding a moon mission... nt EarthFirst Mar 2023 #1
On doubt. 2naSalit Mar 2023 #7
Interesting side note...India and China moon missions set the stage for this discovery. Alexander Of Assyria Mar 2023 #2
Did I miss something, or... hippywife Mar 2023 #3
I'm picturing a hollow sphere Geechie Mar 2023 #4
They really aren't very specific. hippywife Mar 2023 #5
"The water appears to form ... jgo Mar 2023 #6
Yeah, I read that. hippywife Mar 2023 #9
More details and photographs of some beads here ... jgo Mar 2023 #11
lol, you just boil them in water! n/t eggplant Mar 2023 #10
That's the ticket! Geechie Mar 2023 #12
+1 2naSalit Mar 2023 #8
They're more like a volcanic glass Warpy Mar 2023 #13
K&R burrowowl Mar 2023 #14
 

Alexander Of Assyria

(7,839 posts)
2. Interesting side note...India and China moon missions set the stage for this discovery.
Mon Mar 27, 2023, 05:28 PM
Mar 2023

Mankind, united…does more…

Hints that the moon might not be an entirely arid wasteland have emerged from previous missions. In the 1990s, Nasa’s Clementine orbiter found evidence for frozen water in deep, steep-sided craters near the moon’s poles. In 2009, India’s Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft spotted what appeared to be a thin layer of water bound up in the surface layer of moon dust.

hippywife

(22,767 posts)
3. Did I miss something, or...
Mon Mar 27, 2023, 05:59 PM
Mar 2023

did something get lost in translation? Are they really glass, or are they glass-like beads? Coz I'm not seeing how one extracts water from actual glass.

hippywife

(22,767 posts)
5. They really aren't very specific.
Mon Mar 27, 2023, 06:20 PM
Mar 2023

I think the articles says these "beads" are about 1mm in diameter. (Can't get back to it as it's now paywalled or whatever the Guardian does.) Good luck, I guess.

jgo

(870 posts)
6. "The water appears to form ...
Mon Mar 27, 2023, 07:03 PM
Mar 2023

when high-energy particles streaming from the sun – the so-called solar wind – strike the molten droplets. The solar wind contains hydrogen nuclei, which combine with oxygen in the droplets to produce water or hydroxyl ions. The water then becomes locked in the beads, but it can be released by heating the material."

hippywife

(22,767 posts)
9. Yeah, I read that.
Mon Mar 27, 2023, 07:32 PM
Mar 2023

"locked in the beads" isn't terribly specific. Doesn't tell me if the beads are hollow, as Geechie suggested. I still say good luck given the size of these "beads".

Warpy

(110,900 posts)
13. They're more like a volcanic glass
Mon Mar 27, 2023, 07:56 PM
Mar 2023

and created when asteroids and comets slam into the Moon, spraying up molten rock.

The original discovery belongs to China, that found a large quantity of "jelly" that turned out to be glass.

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