Many scientists believe that human beings are a multi-planetary species and they consider the moon and Mars as our possible colonization targets. Adding up the possibility to these dreams, NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) has now discovered traces of moving water on the lunar surface.
During the study, the orbiter observed water molecules moving on the dayside of the moon during the time of noon. Until now, experts have believed that water molecules could be found only in the isolated packs of ice in the moon's poles. But with this new discovery, it has become pretty clear that small amounts of water are still there in the dusty lunar surface or regolith.
Scientists believe that this new discovery will act as a catalyst in elevating human's dreams of setting up a manned colony on the moon.
"These results aid in understanding the lunar water cycle and will ultimately help us learn about the accessibility of water that can be used by humans in future missions to the Moon. Lunar water can potentially be used by humans to make fuel or to use for radiation shielding or thermal management; if these materials do not need to be launched from Earth, that makes these future missions more affordable," said Amanda Hendrix, the lead author of the study, Express.co.uk reports.
Kurt Retherford, the principal investigator of the LRO's Lyman Alpha Mapping Project revealed that this new discovery is very crucial as NASA is planning to return to the moon in the next decade.
Several experts believe that building a manned lunar base is very much essential to fulfilling the dream of building a colony on Mars. A few days back, Elon Musk revealed that he has plans to build a permanent base on the lunar surface. While interacting with the press, Musk revealed that building a permanent manned lunar base will catalyze the plans to build a human colony on the Red Planet.
In the meantime, several conspiracy theorists have started arguing that the discovery of moving water on the moon is an indication of alien existence in the lunar surface. These people believe that aliens have secret bases on the moon and they used to visit the earth quite often to monitor human activities.
