Moon Ice: NASA LCROSS Bombing Discovers Water, Ice Field (PHOTOS)

NASA announced that a "significant" amount of water has been found on the moon, following the LCROSS mission to "bomb" the moon earlier this year.

The LCROSS rocket blasted a crater on the moon's south pole in October 2009, creating a 60- to 100-foot-wide hole in the lunar surface and generating a plume of lunar debris that included "at least 24 gallons of water," writes the New York Times.

NASA notes that the plume included materials that had not seen sunlight in billions of years.

The evidence of lunar ice fields uncovered by NASA's moon blast suggests that the quantity of water on the moon could be greater and more widespread than previously suspected.

The New York Times reports,

"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."

Another NASA scientist commented on the discovery of water,

"Indeed, yes, we found water. And we didn't find just a little bit, we found a significant amount," Anthony Colaprete, LCROSS project scientist and principal investigator from NASA's Ames Research Center at Moffett Field, Calif.

Possible sources of the water include comets and solar winds, although NASA said that they are in the process of studying the water found to better understand its source.

The discovery "opens a new chapter in our understanding of the moon," the agency said in a statement.

Story continues below

advertisement

Finding water on the moon has major ramifications for the future of space exploration, as well as the study of the solar system's history.

NASA spokespersons at the press conference acknowledged that they were "excited" and "ecstatic" by the discovery and "impressed by the amount of water we found."

NASA full report on the discovery can be found here.NASA was livestreaming the press conference on its website here.

Read more about NASA's LCROSS mission to bomb the moon here.

See photos of the LCROSS mission below.

• • • • • • • • • This visible camera image, from NASA, shows the ejecta plume at about 20 seconds after impact.

Comments

[Marlin Ouverson]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VBx8j2IKpcQ

[lihsus]

Yes, NASA you found water on the Moon. Yippee to you. Tell us NASA how is this finding going to solve the current water crises in Africa and some Asian countries? Is LCROSS bombing an option too in these Nations? Tell us, tell us we are soooo very excited for you. Let us solve the Earth problems before wanting kudos for a waste of tax payers money.

It is all about who and which country finds it first. President Obama, correct me if I am wrong, did you not appoint the Chief of NASA? We think you need to go after this guy and ask him to set his priorities straight - LCROSS Africa and Asia before spending hard earned taxpayer money on a worthless, hollow and ineffectual project.

[Caru]

Worthless and ineffectual, you like projecting don't you?

[Cycadeoidea]

Last time I checked NASA has no mandate for solving "the current water crises in Africa and some Asian countries."

[SpeakingTruth101]

Good grief. Get an imagination. And if you really want to go after funding allocations...go after the giant, bloated sow that is the Defense Department...m'kay?

[Solex]

Love being a Luddite, don't you?

[ezeflyer]

And here we thought bottled water was getting so expensive.

[Caru]

Why do you buy it?

[ezeflyer]

For those delicious BPA's

[bioluminescence]

Maybe there are important answers in space. But surely America's urgent problems are here on earth.
So here's the question: does America need NASA programs more than it needs jobs for its citizens?

If you took NASA's budget for just one year. What could you do with it? According to the Congressional Budget Office, here's what you could do with $20 billion in direct government spending: -create 600,000 mass transit jobs; or, -create 720,000 housing jobs; or, -create 820,000 jobs in education or -create 940,000 jobs in the health care industry. And that's just one year.

[SpeakingTruth101]

We also spend money on parks, museums, the arts and other "non-essential" but enlightening and ennobling things. This is a worthwhile expenditure in my opinion. It increases our overall knowledge and will ultimately open us up to vast resources off this planet. How about we shave a couple hundred billion out of the defense department every year?

Or, to quote the late, great Bill Hicks: "You know all that money we spend on the military ever year - trillions of dollars? Instead, if we use this money to feed and clothe the poor of this world, which it would do many times over, then we can explore space, inner and outer, together, as one race. "

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fZkhR8suCF4

[ZTB]

Meanwhile, if you shut down programs at NASA, you will only end up with more job loss.
You can talk about mass transit jobs, housing jobs or any other number of jobs....but it
would really just be trading one job for another....making it really, pointless.

[ancientmarinader]

That's the killer point. Good job.

[ancientmarinader]

But that budget wouldnt transition, Most of that money wouldnt even survive a transition to an all robotic program either. They will either call for tax cuts to return the NASA budget "to the people" or fritter it away on a thousand little existing programs.

WHy not lobby to have the 600 billion dollar defense budget (in peacetime) reduced instead? They wouldnt even notice it.

[Caru]

Oh they'd notice it.

[ZombyWoof]

NASA’s budget does not disappear into the vacuum of space.

NASA like all government agencies does not manufacture anything, it relies on companies and corporations overwhelmingly from right here in the US to provide everything from the components it shoots into space to the clothing worn by the astronauts, office furniture for it facilities, computers, printers etc… right down to the snack vending machines in those same facilities.

NASA employees as well as the employees from all of the various private contractors NASA uses have mortgages to pay, they buy home improvement products, groceries, clothing, they get their lunches from the local Chinese spot or pizzaria , or diner and they all pay taxes. This is all money spent right here at home and contributes to the economy.

It is estimated that technologies developed either directly or as a result of the space program is currently responsible for close to 30% of the GDP.

All this from an organization that has taken less than a penny from each tax dollar since 1978.

Our general population is lagging badly behind other industrialized countries in science and math education and this is one factor that will contribute in a major way to our current slide to irrelevancy.

One day we can all watch on some future floating video screen developed in India as the Chinese plant a Chinese flag on Mars.

[mukTech]

You have a great point Sir/Ma'am. I am a NASA contractor (IT), and my team and I developed an application that has been very valuable. I will not tell you what the application is for obvious reasons but NASA's budget goes a very long way...

[Gatormouth]

After all the problems we as a species have created for the rest of our biosphere we now are being given the opportunity to create a Lunar base. This could be the first step toward an impact body early warning and interdiction system! About time we started being "good stewards". It also could be a generator of new technology, scientific knowledge, and job growth. It must be done in the name of all nations, however. The moon must not be politicized or "owned" by any one country. And screw corporate ownership in any form!

[gifu]

If the moon had legs, it would be running at full speed across the galaxy to get the hell away from us dreaded Earthlings.

[Caru]

Again, physics people.

[Littlewords]

In spite of all we've learned through time, why am I left with the suspicion that we will somehow find a way to someday pollute the moon's water?

[gifu]

First, e must sedate it.

[Caru]

And kill all those moon critters.

[chris24j]

Perhaps because you don't know a lot about space exploration . . .

[geezedout]

MOST of these comments make us sound like fools.

[GrantedBKNY]

Can we LCROSS Sarah Palin, Glenn Beck and the like (and their fans/apologists) to search for brain cells?

[brent3d]

So where is the actual film footage of the initial impact that NASA promised? Where is the evidence that this actually took place, outside of a possible photo shopped fuzzy b&w image of a ploom? and whats up with the guy who appears mad at the end of the NASA tape who just gets up and walks out?

[SpeakingTruth101]

You're right. It was done on a sound studio in Pasedena. Or was it created by a CIA computer graphics expert deep in the bowels of a secret base? Oooh, maybe it actually happened but the government conspiracy is that they want us to think it's a conspiracy so we will fear the extent of their reach. Hold on...need more model airplane glue...

[brent3d]

Uh, I'm not talking talking about conspiracy here. I would think by now americans would want clear proof of governmental actions that cost millions and billions of dollars, instead of taking them on face value by now. Now it's wrong to "question" a governmental agency? Wow you must be stupid. If the facts exist then show them and I won't have any questions. A long form birth certificate will due..lol..

[ancientmarinader]

You really think NASA cant throw a probe at the moon? Really?

[ZTB]

when they aired it "happening"...they said it would not be clearly visible with the human eye....
that you would not witness it in the same way as witnessing something happening right in front of you.

what's with all you people looking to make a conspiracy out of everything?

[brent3d]

No conspiracy, just questioning when the facts are not evident or are we not to question NASA? hmmm. Trust is earned don't you think? Do you trust your government? really?

[josephebacon]

So are we going to build Moonbase Alpha, send our nuclear waste to the Moon and then recoil in horror when the waste blows the Moon out of orbit??????

[Pyfagorus]

If we were going to send our nuclear waste off-planet, the logical place would be the Sun. It's just a big fusion reactor anyway.

[ResistanceisFutile]

Sure let's just mess with the sun. We don't need no stinkin sun!

[Caru]

Well it would be a shock as it breaks several of the laws of physics.

[John Charlton]

science means very little to most of the commentors on this site....

[NYC123]

Yes, we can use something else to distract us (USA) from being focused and responsible. We have major problems lkke: global waming, get out of 2 wars, get jobs, get out of 2 wars again, safe food supplies, manufacturing back home again, make our treasury solvent! .... No, lets go to the moon and screw that place up too!

[Caru]

How exactly do we screw up a dead rock.

[dwright]

I guess you don't understand that that is how we got to this planet. We already destroyed other planets and came here to trash this one

[Caru]

Can we leave you behind next time?

[mukTech]

Really??

[chris24j]

Actually, going to the moon may well help us solve a lot of the problems here. Everything you mention requires attention, but research shouldn't be ignored completely, and relatively little is spent on a program that provides huge benefits (including our ability to have this discussion . . . via satellite.)

[NYC123]

Now if China went out and bombed the moon, can you (we) imagine the US outrage!! Hands down, would be top news 24/7 in US bloggers sphere, and government threats of violating "freedom from bombs in out of space act" or something like that!

[WebCommoner]

Uh, I think the proper word is "fear," not "outrage." The US doesn't own the moon, but we sure would be concerned if China managed to do it before us. Case in point, Sputnik.

[hacksaw]

HAL: Look Dave, I can see you're really upset about this. I honestly think you ought to sit down calmly, take a stress pill, and think things over.

[Pyfagorus]

:->

[T Specter]

Tax money well spent.

[mergina]

Oh no. I can see the Golden Arches glowing in my telescope someday soon. BLAH!

[Clairvaux]

Billions and Billions ...

[Ted LPD]

My village looks like that.... Are you sure these are not doctored?