China confirms the presence of water on the moon

 Chang'e-5 is the fifth lunar exploration mission of China's Lunar Exploration Program, launched on November 23, 2020. The rover landed on the Moon on December 1, 2020 on northern Oceanus Procellarum near the huge Mons Rümker volcanic complex. Now it turned out that the Chinese device has collected evidence of the presence of water on the moon, which significantly brings the possibility of building a permanent base on the surface of the silver globe.

Oceanus Procellarum, which means "Ocean of Storms" in Latin, is a vast lunar basaltic plain that was created by volcanic activity caused by the collision of ancient asteroids on the far side of the Moon. At the Oceanus Procellarum landing site, Chang'e 5 took more than 60 lunar samples from a core about a meter deep. The Chang'e-5 lander left the Moon on December 3, and the orbiter returned the samples to Earth on December 16, 2020. Scientists have been studying them ever since.

In 2020, China's Chang'e-5 lunar probe confirmed for the first time the presence of a water signal in basalt rocks and soil using on-board real-time spectral analysis. The results of the research were confirmed by laboratory analysis of samples returned by the device in 2021. Now Chang'e-5's team has determined where the water comes from. The scientists published their findings in the journal Nature Communications.

Chang'e-5 did not observe lunar rivers or springs, rather it determined an average of 30 hydroxyls per million in rocks and soil on the lunar surface. These molecules, composed of one oxygen atom and one hydrogen atom, are the main constituent of water, and also the most common reaction result chemical interaction of water molecules with other substances. The samples were taken during the hottest part of the lunar day, near 93°C, when the surface would be the driest. This time also coincides with the weak solar winds, which can favor hydration if their power is high enough.

Chinese scientists plan to further explore the moon with the successors Chang'e-5, Chang'e-6 and Chang'e-7.