Water on Moon is native to it, confirmed

Despite its prominent position in the night sky, Moon is a desolate landscape. The surface of Earth's only satellite appears mottled with great many impacts from space rocks. But there is water on Moon.

While our plans to take out-of-the-world dip on the lunar swimming pool may need a patient rethink, China's Chang'E-5 lunar has an important thing to tell us. The lunar lander has determined that the water found on Moon is indeed native to the Moon!

The researchers analysing lunar samples on Earth have published their findings in paper in Nature Communications and have confirmed the native origin of water on the Moon.

Water and Hydroxyl have been found in the lunar soil samples taken from Apollo missions. Hydroxyl has one Hydrogen atom associated with one Oxygen atom.

Some theories say that Hydroxyl ion on the Moon are mainly formed due to Hydrogen atoms in the Solar wind that hits the Moon.

The research paper said that while one-third of the Hydroxyl ions in the sample taken by Chang'E came from solar wind, rest of the Hydroxyl content came from a mineral on the Moon called apatite. In other words, water found on Moon is native to the Moon!