A new study published in the Astrophysical Journal Letters shows that solar wind may not be the only source of water-forming ions on the moon. Scientists show that the particles of the moon with water imply that even other planets can contribute water to their satellites. Water is common in space. It is available from the surface of Mars to Jupiter’s moons and Saturn’s rings, comets, asteroids and Pluto.
Moon can get water from ‘wind’
Water has been detected in clouds that are far from the solar system. It was previously assumed that water was absorbed into these objects during the formation of the solar system. Over time, however, there has been evidence that water in space is common and more dynamic. Several computer models predicted that up to half of the lunar surface would evaporate during the full moon and disappear in high-latitude areas.
Read: Enchanting picture of moon with rainbow ring therefore amazes people; Photos are
The latest analysis of surface hydroxyl / water surface maps by the Moon Mineralogy Mapper of the Chandrayaan-1 satellite revealed that lunar surface water does not disappear during this magnetosphere shielding period. Though it was thought that the Earth’s magnetic field would impede the solar wind to reach the moon. However, researchers later found out that this was never the case.
Read: Moon Rock, from NASA’s Apollo 17 mission, displayed in Joe Biden’s oval office
The researchers compared the time series of water surface maps before, during and after the passage of magnetospheres, and they argued that the lunar water could be supplemented by currents of magnetospheric ions. This is called the ‘Earth Wind’. Later, the Kaguya satellite confirmed the presence of these Earth-derived ions near the moon.
THEMIS-ARTEMIS satellite observations were also used to profile the characteristic properties of ions. Previous observations by the Kaguya satellite during full moon have detected high concentrations of oxygen isotopes. It was leaked from the earth’s ozone layer and embedded in lunar soil. It was also present with an abundance of hydrogen ions in the earth’s exosphere.
Read: Full Moon 2021 Schedule: View all full moon dates with times here
Read also: Scientists identify more than 1 Lakh previously unrecognizable lunar impact craters