NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) has confirmed, for the first time, water on the sunlit surface of the Moon. This discovery indicates that water may be distributed across the lunar surface, and not limited to cold, shadowed places.Oct 26, 2020
What was found on the Moon 2020?
Diffuse water molecules can persist at the Moon's sunlit surface, as discovered by NASA's SOFIA observatory in 2020. … Scientists have found water ice in the cold, permanently shadowed craters at the Moon's poles. Water molecules are also present in the extremely thin lunar atmosphere.
What NASA found on moon?
NASA and the Germany space agency's airborne SOFIA telescope could distinguish between the two. In 2020, it confirmed the presence of water molecules, as in H2O, on the Moon's surface in non-polar regions. Scientists now knew that the lunar soil does hold trace amounts of water even in non-polar regions.
What was NASA’s big announcement about the Moon today?
The US space agency, Nasa, has revealed conclusive evidence of water on the Moon. Unlike previous detections of water in permanently shadowed parts of lunar craters, scientists have now detected the molecule in sunlit regions of the Moon's surface.
Is NASA going to the Moon in 2020?
NASA has let go of its goal to return humans to the moon's surface by 2024. … In a timeline set by the Trump administration, NASA has been working toward landing humans on the moon by 2024 as part of its Artemis program.
Do we have 2 moons?
The earth has picked up a second moon. It's not very big. In fact it's almost impossible to see. Astronomer Kacper Wierzchos says it's an asteroid that's roughly 9 feet in diameter that got captured by the earth's gravity about 3 years ago.
Can the moon crash into Earth?
Short answer: Technically it's possible that the Earth and Moon could collide in the very distant future, but it's very unlikely. It's certainly not going to happen while any of us are alive. … The Moon is actually moving away from Earth at the rate of a few centimetres per year.
Is there oxygen on moon?
The Moon's top layer of rocks, known as regolith, has abundant oxygen, and can be extracted to support human life. … Louis, the top surface layer of the Moon is made up of 41-45 percent oxygen, but is trapped inside the regolith consisting of minerals such as silica, aluminium, iron and magnesium oxides.
How was water found on the moon?
The definitive discovery of Moon water came in 2008, when India's space agency ISRO launched the Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft to lunar orbit. … In 2020, NASA and the German space agency's flying SOFIA telescope observed the Moon in infrared and confirmed the presence of water in non-polar regions.