Chinese lunar samples reveal water molecules in surprising discovery, scientists say | CNN

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When Chinese scientists were analyzing the soil samples that their lunar probe brought to the moon, they noticed something important: There was water found along with minerals in the soil.

Finding water on the moon, in itself, is nothing new. NASA and Indian spacecraft have spotted what they believe is water on the moon, and Chinese scientists last year found water trapped in glass beads scattered across the moon.

But this latest discovery, scientists say, is the first time water in its molecular form, H2O, has been found in physical samples – and, crucially, taken from a part of the moon where they first when they thought water was like that. it cannot exist.

Researchers analyzed samples collected by China’s Chang’e-5 probe, which will land on the moon in 2020, and found a “transparent plate-like crystal” – about the diameter of a human hair of man – which was “unknown mineral of the moon” called ULM-1, according to the study, published on July 16 in the journal Nature Astronomy.

The ULM-1 crystal (with the chemical formula (NH4)MgCl3 · 6H2O) is composed of about 41% water, with ammonia particles that keep the H2O molecules stable. regardless of the wild temperature of the month, according to the study.

This type of water could be a “source for a lunar habitat,” the scientists wrote in their study.

The discovery is the latest discovery in China’s ambitious push to become a space superpower – with big ambitions such as building a research base on the moon. The initiative was hailed by delighted Chinese social media users, who pointed to the space program as a source of national pride.

“The discovery of water-bearing minerals on the Chang’e-5 surface is remarkable and will enhance our understanding of the reaction of rock vapor in the lunar surface and in the lunar surface,” said David A. Kring, a scientist at the mainly in the educational institution. Lunar and Planetary Institute in Texas, who was not involved in the study.

There are three possible types of water on the moon, according to Yuqi Qian, a planetary geologist at the University of Hong Kong, who was not involved in the study.

There are water molecules, the compound we know as H2O; its frozen form, frozen; and a molecular compound called hydroxyl, which is related to nearby chemicals.

Previous discoveries have suggested that water was present on the moon when volcanoes erupted in ancient times – and that the moon’s water came from volcanoes , which means he came from inside the moon and has been there since the beginning of the moon.

But people did not always know that the moon has water, even though scientists have suggested that it exists for hundreds of years. At times, researchers believed the moon was dry, especially after they initially failed to find water in samples collected by NASA’s Apollo and the Soviet Union’s Luna missions.

It was only in recent years that scientists discovered water molecules, ice and water, most of which are in the dark, cold regions of the moon where the sun does not reach. A recent study also suggests that water or hydroxyl may be trapped in glass beads scattered on the surface of the moon, and that the solar wind may convert hydroxyl (chemical formula OH) to make water, or H2O.

But it is difficult to move the poles of the moon because of the rocky terrain, which makes them difficult places for people to draw water from. And molecular water is “unstable in some parts of the moon,” evaporating in the lower regions where temperatures can exceed 100 degrees Celsius (212 Fahrenheit), Qian said.

This new study changes that.

The samples, taken by China’s Chang’e-5 probe, are from the central part of the moon, at 43.1 degrees latitude — a region that is normally “unstable for molecular water,” Qian said. Ammonium was found in the samples, which acted as a stabilizer for water molecules, he explained.

The device also confirms NASA’s findings from 2020, when its SOFIA telescope detected the signature of water on the moon’s surface – although scientists could not confirm the findings with physical samples at the time that, or to explain exactly how the water was located in the hot area.

Qian said: “I think it has many possibilities, this new discovery that we can extract molecular water directly from the lunar soil.” “I think this is a new way to make molecular water stable on the surface of the moon.”

Kring, from the Lunar and Planetary Institute, warned that although the sample was collected in the mid-latitude area, “it was not clear if it was based there. Impact processes can redistribute rock on the moon’s surface. ”

A growing number of countries, including the United States, are looking at the strategic and scientific benefits of extended lunar exploration.

China has made rapid progress in recent years, reflecting leader Xi Jinping’s “eternal dream” of building the country into a space power.

In 2013, China became the first country to reach the robot moon in nearly four decades. Then in 2019, it became the first and only country to land on the far side of the moon. Three years later, China completed its latest space station, Tiangong.

And it has many plans, aiming to land scientists on the moon by 2030 and build a research center on its southern tip.

Understanding how water is stored on the moon is useful, experts once told CNN, because it could point future lunar scientists to potential sources that could one day be turned into drinking water or even rocket fuel.

After a recent study, many Weibo users proposed the possibility of growing plants or crops on the moon using molecular water found in the soil. But, Qian said, it’s too early to make those kinds of decisions. Growing anything on the moon will depend on factors such as how much water there is – which requires more research to confirm.

However, he added, “this new event, this new machine… will open the possibility to (find) new water in this new way.”

Kring also warned that the findings so far “do not have major implications for exploration plans, although they do show that discoveries await those willing and able to explore the Moon.”

China’s rapid development has caught NASA’s attention. The space agency has not been allowed to work with its Chinese counterparts since 2011, when Congress passed the Wolf Amendment citing concerns about espionage.

But last August, China opened access to Chang’e-5 samples to the international community.

“We are working now with our scientists and our lawyers to make sure that the orders and expectations that the Chinese are insisting on… . “As of this moment, I don’t see any violation of the law.”

But such news has left China barred from the International Space Station (ISS), which is intensifying its efforts to build ​​Tiangong – which has become a rival to the US, especially when the ISS is preparing to retire in 2031.

These limitations in its international cooperation, and the rise of China, have left some Chinese social media users feeling vindicated by the latest discovery – in online comments and media coverage. of the government that applauds the progress of the national space program.

“This is a sign of our country’s strength in science and technology!” one user posted on China’s Weibo site, where a hashtag about the discovery has been viewed 35 million times.

One user thanked the country’s space program, writing: “We are at the forefront of the world in lunar science research.”

Others on Weibo urged greater cooperation for the benefit of mankind, pointing out that the study was published in an international peer-reviewed journal.

Another wrote: “We can’t work behind closed doors – it would be better to lure all their scientists to China.”