Leonard David's INSIDE OUTER SPACE

Robotic and human explorers are on the hunt for lunar polar volatiles that can be utilized for an extended stay on the moon.
Image credit: Hawaii Institute of Geophysics and Planetology, University of Hawaii at Manoa

Earth’s moon is a treasure trove of resources and an upcoming meeting of international experts will focus on today’s state of knowledge regarding volatiles in the lunar polar regions.

Lunar volatiles include hydrogen, water, helium, carbon dioxide, and carbon monoxide – items that can be used as a fuel source, breathable air, and as a source of drinking water.

The goal of next month’s gathering is to help prepare for an onslaught of upcoming robotic and crewed expeditions by multiple nations to explore for, investigate and ultimately utilize lunar polar volatiles.

Nine candidate landing regions for NASA’s Artemis III mission The background image of the lunar South Pole terrain within the nine regions is a mosaic of LRO (Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter) WAC (Wide Angle Camera) images.
Image credit: NASA

Wanted: definitive measurements

As for water ice possibly lurking in sunlight-shy craters…what’s truly needed is definitive measurements of the ice content, explains one scientist.

For details, go to my new Space.com story – “Can we find water ice on the moon? Only if we know where to look, scientists say” – at:

https://www.space.com/astronomy/moon/can-we-find-water-ice-on-the-moon-only-if-we-know-where-to-look-scientists-say