Water on the moon!
NASA announced today that the LCROSS mission (perhaps better known as 'when NASA bombed the moon') did in fact find water - in the form of ice - on the moon.
My compatriot Rich in the UK points out a similar announcement made in September after an Indian moon mission. The different between the two missions seems to be that while the Indian mission Chandrayaan-1 found evidence of water through electromagnetic analysis, the LCROSS mission actually made physical contact with the stuff, allowing NASA scientists to state that water exists unequivocally and in large amounts.
Does this mean we're going to the moon? Maybe! Water already up there could provide an invaluable resource for exploratory missions. The Obama administration has called for a review of spending on manned space programs with possible cuts looming. However, the 2010 budget did include "$630 million in additional near-term funding for development of follow-on rockets and spacecraft needed for the agency's post-shuttle moon program". Big cuts could be in the works after that, but finding water on the moon might pump a little more life and funding back into the program.
Should we go to the moon? Let us know what you think on Current News.
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The satellite, known as Lcross (pronounced L-cross), slammed into a crater near the Moon’s south pole a month ago. The impact carved out a hole 60- to 100-feet wide and kicked up at least 24 gallons of water.
“We got more than just whiff,” said Peter H. Schultz, a professor of geological sciences at Brown University and a co-investigator of the mission. “We practically tasted it with the impact.”
My compatriot Rich in the UK points out a similar announcement made in September after an Indian moon mission. The different between the two missions seems to be that while the Indian mission Chandrayaan-1 found evidence of water through electromagnetic analysis, the LCROSS mission actually made physical contact with the stuff, allowing NASA scientists to state that water exists unequivocally and in large amounts.
Does this mean we're going to the moon? Maybe! Water already up there could provide an invaluable resource for exploratory missions. The Obama administration has called for a review of spending on manned space programs with possible cuts looming. However, the 2010 budget did include "$630 million in additional near-term funding for development of follow-on rockets and spacecraft needed for the agency's post-shuttle moon program". Big cuts could be in the works after that, but finding water on the moon might pump a little more life and funding back into the program.
Should we go to the moon? Let us know what you think on Current News.
Recently on the Current News Blog:
- Khalid Sheikh Mohammed to be tried in New York for 9/11
- Porn 2.0 - Christof Putzel's Vanguard documentary
- Does Ciudad Juarez need UN peacekeepers?
- Who are the basij? A look at Iran's hard-line militia
- Is college worth the high cost? - The Real Recovery
