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He H, Hu S, Gao L, Li R, Hao J, Mitchell RN, Lu K, Gao Y, Li L, Qiu M, Zhou Z, Yang W, Cai S, Chen Y, Jia L, Li QL, Hui H, Lin Y, Li XH, Wu FY. Lunar dichotomy in surface water storage of impact glass beads. Nat Commun 2025; 16:4971. [PMID: 40436902 PMCID: PMC12119804 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-60388-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2024] [Accepted: 05/22/2025] [Indexed: 06/01/2025] Open
Abstract
Water is the one of most precious resources for planetary utilisation. Lunar nearside impact glass beads (IGBs) have been demonstrated to contain abundant solar wind-derived water (SW-H2O); however, little is known about its farside counterpart. Here, we report the water abundances and hydrogen isotope compositions and their distribution in farside IGBs collected by the Chang'e-6 mission to investigate the role of IGBs in the lunar surface water cycle. Farside IGBs are found to have water abundances of ~10-1,070 μg.g-1 with hydrogen isotopes (δD) ranging from -988‰ to >2000‰ and display typical SW-H2O hydration profiles. The SW-H2O hydration depths in farside IGBs are strikingly shallower than in nearside IGBs. Moreover, the hydration profiles are only found in mare IGBs, with none observed in non-mare IGBs, indicating that SW-H2O hydration in IGBs is likely composition dependent. These findings indicate that SW-H2O storage of IGBs exhibits a dichotomy distribution in lunar soils.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huicun He
- Key Laboratory of the Earth and Planetary Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Sen Hu
- Key Laboratory of the Earth and Planetary Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
- College of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
| | - Liang Gao
- Key Laboratory of the Earth and Planetary Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- College of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Ruiying Li
- Key Laboratory of the Earth and Planetary Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Jialong Hao
- Key Laboratory of the Earth and Planetary Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Ross N Mitchell
- College of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- State Key Laboratory of Lithospheric and Environmental Coevolution, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Kai Lu
- State Key Laboratory of Lithospheric and Environmental Coevolution, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Yubing Gao
- Key Laboratory of the Earth and Planetary Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- College of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Linxi Li
- Key Laboratory of the Earth and Planetary Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- College of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Mengfan Qiu
- Key Laboratory of the Earth and Planetary Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- College of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Zhan Zhou
- Key Laboratory of the Earth and Planetary Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- College of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Wei Yang
- Key Laboratory of the Earth and Planetary Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Shuhui Cai
- State Key Laboratory of Lithospheric and Environmental Coevolution, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Yi Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Lithospheric and Environmental Coevolution, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Lihui Jia
- State Key Laboratory of Lithospheric and Environmental Coevolution, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Qiu-Li Li
- State Key Laboratory of Lithospheric and Environmental Coevolution, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Hejiu Hui
- State Key Laboratory for Mineral Deposits Research& Lunar and Planetary Science Institute, School of the Earth Sciences and Engineering, Nanjing University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China
| | - Yangting Lin
- Key Laboratory of the Earth and Planetary Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Xian-Hua Li
- State Key Laboratory of Lithospheric and Environmental Coevolution, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Fu-Yuan Wu
- State Key Laboratory of Lithospheric and Environmental Coevolution, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
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2
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Hubbard KM, Elkins-Tanton LT, Masson-Zwaan T. A mining code for regulating lunar water ice mining activities. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2024; 121:e2321079121. [PMID: 39680763 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2321079121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/18/2024] Open
Abstract
Despite the increasing number of space launches, growth of the commercial space sector, signing of the Artemis Accords, maturation of space mining technologies, the emergence of a regulatory environment through domestic legislation, and a comprehensive body of international law, an intergovernmental governing authority has yet to be established to manage mining activities on the Moon. We developed a Lunar Mining Code and mapping tool to regulate and manage prospecting and exploration activities for water ice at the Moon's poles. The Lunar Mining Code is composed of a notification system to manage prospecting, a contract system for issuing exploration licenses to allotted areas on the Moon, and best mining practices and principles to promote equal access and safeguard the lunar environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kevin M Hubbard
- School of Earth and Space Exploration, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287
| | - Linda T Elkins-Tanton
- School of Earth and Space Exploration, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287
| | - Tanja Masson-Zwaan
- International Institute of Air and Space Law, Institute of Public Law, Leiden University, Leiden 2311 ES, The Netherlands
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3
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Shearer CK, Sharp ZD, Stopar J. Exploring, sampling, and interpreting lunar volatiles in polar cold traps. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2024; 121:e2321071121. [PMID: 39680770 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2321071121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2024] [Accepted: 06/11/2024] [Indexed: 12/18/2024] Open
Abstract
Numerous missions to the Moon have identified and documented volatile deposits associated with permanently shadowed regions. A series of science goals for the Artemis Program is to explore these volatile deposits and return samples to Earth. Volatiles in these reservoirs may consist of a variety of species whose stable isotope characteristics could elucidate both their sources and the processes instrumental in their formation. For example, the δD of potential contributors to the deposits can be used to identify a uniquely light solar wind component. Because of the exceptionally low temperatures of these volatile deposits, examining and interpreting their stable isotope systems to fulfill Artemis science goals through sampling, preserving, curating, and analyzing these samples are far more difficult than for other sample return missions. Collecting and preserving the samples at cryogenic temperatures dramatically increases science yield but is technologically demanding and poses increased risk during transport.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charles K Shearer
- Institute of Meteoritics, Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131
| | - Zachary D Sharp
- Center of Stable Isotopes, Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131
| | - Julie Stopar
- Lunar and Planetary Institute, Universities Space Research Association, Houston, TX 77058
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4
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Reiss P. Exploring the lunar water cycle. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2024; 121:e2321065121. [PMID: 39680773 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2321065121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/18/2024] Open
Abstract
The presence of water on the Moon has been indicated by various remote-sensing observations and analyses of returned samples. Several missions are planned to conduct new in situ research on the lunar surface to directly observe and characterize lunar water. A comprehensive characterization of the present forms of water, their abundance, spatial distribution, temporal variation, and possible origin is required to understand the lunar water cycle and the relevance of individual source and sink mechanisms and transformations between the involved volatile species. These processes extend over vastly different scales, and the governing parameters are often insufficiently constrained by experimental and observational data. Here, I present a brief overview of the current state of knowledge on the lunar water cycle, its relevance for lunar science and exploration, and some of the main challenges of modeling and future in situ analyses aiming to substantially advance the understanding of lunar water occurrences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Philipp Reiss
- Technical University of Munich, School of Engineering and Design, Department of Aerospace and Geodesy, Ottobrunn 85521, Germany
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5
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Lin H, Xu R, Li S, Chang R, Hui H, Liu Y, Tian H, Fan K, He Z, He H, Yang W, Lin Y, Wei Y. Higher water content observed in smaller size fraction of Chang'e-5 lunar regolith samples. Sci Bull (Beijing) 2024; 69:3723-3729. [PMID: 38945747 DOI: 10.1016/j.scib.2024.05.031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/15/2024] [Revised: 05/14/2024] [Accepted: 05/15/2024] [Indexed: 07/02/2024]
Abstract
Water has been detected in lunar regolith, with multiple sources identified through the analysis of individual grains. However, the primary origin of water in the bulk lunar regolith remains uncertain. This study presents spectroscopic analyses of water content in sealed Chang'e-5 samples. These samples were sieved into various size fractions (bulk, <45 μm, and 45-355 μm) inside a glovebox filled with high-purity nitrogen. Results indicate a higher water content in the fine fractions (∼87 ± 11.9 ppm) than in bulk soil (∼37 ± 4.8 ppm) and coarse fractions (∼11 ± 1.5 ppm). This suggests that water is predominantly concentrated in the outermost rims of the regolith grains, and thus exhibits dependence on the surface volume ratio (also known as surface correlation), indicating solar wind is a primary source of lunar surface water. Laboratory, in-situ, and orbital results bridge sample analysis and remote sensing, offering a cohesive understanding of lunar surface water characteristics as represented by Chang'e-5. The discovery provides statistical evidence for the origin of water in lunar soil and can be considered representative of the lunar surface conditions. The water enrichment of the finest fraction suggests the feasibility of employing size sorting of lunar soils as a potential technological approach for water resource extraction in future lunar research stations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Honglei Lin
- Key Laboratory of Earth and Planetary Physics, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100029, China
| | - Rui Xu
- Key Laboratory of Space Active Opto-Electronics Technology, Shanghai Institute of Technical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200083, China
| | - Shuai Li
- Hawaii Institute of Geophysics and Planetology, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, Honolulu, HI 96822, USA
| | - Rui Chang
- Key Laboratory of Earth and Planetary Physics, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100029, China
| | - Hejiu Hui
- State Key Laboratory for Mineral Deposits Research and Lunar and Planetary Science Institute, School of Earth Sciences and Engineering, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, China
| | - Yang Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Space Weather, National Space Science Center, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
| | - Hengci Tian
- Key Laboratory of Earth and Planetary Physics, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100029, China
| | - Kai Fan
- Key Laboratory of Earth and Planetary Physics, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100029, China
| | - Zhiping He
- Key Laboratory of Space Active Opto-Electronics Technology, Shanghai Institute of Technical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200083, China
| | - Huaiyu He
- Key Laboratory of Earth and Planetary Physics, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100029, China
| | - Wei Yang
- Key Laboratory of Earth and Planetary Physics, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100029, China.
| | - Yangting Lin
- Key Laboratory of Earth and Planetary Physics, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100029, China.
| | - Yong Wei
- Key Laboratory of Earth and Planetary Physics, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100029, China.
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6
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Chen X, Yang S, Chen G, Xu W, Song L, Li A, Yin H, Xia W, Gao M, Li M, Wu H, Cui J, Zhang L, Miao L, Shui X, Xie W, Ke P, Huang Y, Sun J, Yao B, Ji M, Xiang M, Zhang Y, Zhao S, Yao W, Zou Z, Yang M, Wang W, Huo J, Wang JQ, Bai H. Massive water production from lunar ilmenite through reaction with endogenous hydrogen. Innovation (N Y) 2024; 5:100690. [PMID: 39301119 PMCID: PMC11411434 DOI: 10.1016/j.xinn.2024.100690] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2024] [Accepted: 08/17/2024] [Indexed: 09/22/2024] Open
Abstract
Finding water resources is a crucial objective of lunar missions. However, both hydroxyl (OH) and natural water (H2O) have been reported to be scarce on the Moon. We propose a potential method for obtaining water on the Moon through H2O formation via endogenous reactions in lunar regolith (LR), specifically through the reaction FeO/Fe2O3 + H → Fe + H2O. This process is demonstrated using LR samples brought back by the Chang'E-5 mission. FeO and Fe2O3 are lunar minerals containing Fe oxides. Hydrogen (H) retained in lunar minerals from the solar wind can be used to produce water. The results of this study reveal that 51-76 mg of H2O can be generated from 1 g of LR after melting at temperatures above 1,200 K. This amount is ∼10,000 times the naturally occurring OH and H2O on the Moon. Among the five primary minerals in LR returned by the Chang'E-5 mission, FeTiO3 ilmenite contains the highest amount of H, owing to its unique lattice structure with sub-nanometer tunnels. For the first time, in situ heating experiments using a transmission electron microscope reveal the concurrent formation of Fe crystals and H2O bubbles. Electron irradiation promotes the endogenous redox reaction, which is helpful for understanding the distribution of OH on the Moon. Our findings suggest that the hydrogen retained in LR is a significant resource for obtaining H2O on the Moon, which is helpful for establishing a scientific research station on the Moon.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiao Chen
- Key Laboratory of Magnetic Materials and Devices, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China
- Center of Materials Science and Optoelectronics Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Shiyu Yang
- Key Laboratory of Magnetic Materials and Devices, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China
- Center of Materials Science and Optoelectronics Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Guoxin Chen
- Center of Test and Analysis, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China
| | - Wei Xu
- Key Laboratory of Magnetic Materials and Devices, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China
| | - Lijian Song
- Key Laboratory of Magnetic Materials and Devices, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China
| | - Ao Li
- Key Laboratory of Magnetic Materials and Devices, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China
| | - Hangboce Yin
- Key Laboratory of Magnetic Materials and Devices, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China
| | - Weixing Xia
- Key Laboratory of Magnetic Materials and Devices, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China
| | - Meng Gao
- Key Laboratory of Magnetic Materials and Devices, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China
| | - Ming Li
- Center of Test and Analysis, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China
| | - Haichen Wu
- Center of Test and Analysis, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China
| | - Junfeng Cui
- Center of Test and Analysis, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China
| | - Lei Zhang
- Center of Test and Analysis, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China
| | - Lijing Miao
- Center of Test and Analysis, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China
| | - Xiaoxue Shui
- Center of Test and Analysis, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China
| | - Weiping Xie
- Center of Test and Analysis, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China
| | - Peiling Ke
- Center of Test and Analysis, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China
| | - Yongjiang Huang
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150001, China
| | - Jianfei Sun
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150001, China
| | - Bingnan Yao
- Key Laboratory of Magnetic Materials and Devices, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China
| | - Min Ji
- Key Laboratory of Magnetic Materials and Devices, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China
| | - Mingliang Xiang
- Key Laboratory of Magnetic Materials and Devices, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China
| | - Yan Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Magnetic Materials and Devices, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China
- Center of Materials Science and Optoelectronics Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Shaofan Zhao
- Qian Xuesen Laboratory of Space Technology, China Academy of Space Technology (CAST), Beijing 100049, China
| | - Wei Yao
- Qian Xuesen Laboratory of Space Technology, China Academy of Space Technology (CAST), Beijing 100049, China
| | - Zhigang Zou
- Qian Xuesen Laboratory of Space Technology, China Academy of Space Technology (CAST), Beijing 100049, China
- College of Engineering and Applied Science, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210093, China
| | - Mengfei Yang
- Qian Xuesen Laboratory of Space Technology, China Academy of Space Technology (CAST), Beijing 100049, China
| | - Weihua Wang
- Center of Materials Science and Optoelectronics Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
- Qian Xuesen Laboratory of Space Technology, China Academy of Space Technology (CAST), Beijing 100049, China
- Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
- Songshan Lake Materials Laboratory, Dongguan 523830, China
| | - Juntao Huo
- Key Laboratory of Magnetic Materials and Devices, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China
- Center of Materials Science and Optoelectronics Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Jun-Qiang Wang
- Key Laboratory of Magnetic Materials and Devices, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China
- Center of Materials Science and Optoelectronics Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Haiyang Bai
- Center of Materials Science and Optoelectronics Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
- Qian Xuesen Laboratory of Space Technology, China Academy of Space Technology (CAST), Beijing 100049, China
- Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
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7
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Zhou C, Mo B, Tang H, Gu Y, Li X, Zhu D, Yu W, Liu J. Multiple sources of water preserved in impact glasses from Chang'e-5 lunar soil. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2024; 10:eadl2413. [PMID: 38728402 PMCID: PMC11086615 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adl2413] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2023] [Accepted: 04/05/2024] [Indexed: 05/12/2024]
Abstract
The existence of molecular H2O and evolution of solar wind-derived water on the lunar surface remain controversial. We report that large amounts of OH and molecular H2O related to solar wind and other multiple sources are preserved in impact glasses from Chang'e-5 (CE5) lunar soil based on reflectance infrared spectroscopy and nanoscale secondary ion mass spectrometry analyses. The estimated water content contributed by impact glasses to CE5 lunar soil was ~72 ppm, including molecular H2O of up to 15 to 25 ppm. Our studies revealed that impact glasses are the main carrier of molecular H2O in lunar soils. Moreover, water in CE5 impact glasses provides a record of complex formation processes and multiple water sources, including water derived from solar wind, deposited by water-bearing meteorites/micrometeorites, and inherited from lunar indigenous water. Our study provides a better understanding of the evolution of surficial water on airless bodies and identifies potential source and storage pathways for water in the terrestrial planets.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chuanjiao Zhou
- Center for Lunar and Planetary Sciences, Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guiyang 550081, China
- College of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Bing Mo
- Center for Lunar and Planetary Sciences, Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guiyang 550081, China
- Center for Excellence in Comparative Planetology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Hong Tang
- Center for Lunar and Planetary Sciences, Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guiyang 550081, China
- Center for Excellence in Comparative Planetology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Yaya Gu
- Center for Lunar and Planetary Sciences, Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guiyang 550081, China
- College of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Xiongyao Li
- Center for Lunar and Planetary Sciences, Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guiyang 550081, China
- Center for Excellence in Comparative Planetology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Dan Zhu
- State Key Laboratory of Ore Deposit Geochemistry, Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guiyang 550081, China
| | - Wen Yu
- Center for Lunar and Planetary Sciences, Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guiyang 550081, China
- Center for Excellence in Comparative Planetology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Jianzhong Liu
- Center for Lunar and Planetary Sciences, Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guiyang 550081, China
- Center for Excellence in Comparative Planetology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei 230026, China
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8
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Wang C, Jia Y, Xue C, Lin Y, Liu J, Fu X, Xu L, Huang Y, Zhao Y, Xu Y, Gao R, Wei Y, Tang Y, Yu D, Zou Y. Scientific objectives and payload configuration of the Chang'E-7 mission. Natl Sci Rev 2024; 11:nwad329. [PMID: 38384740 PMCID: PMC10880881 DOI: 10.1093/nsr/nwad329] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/2023] [Revised: 12/18/2023] [Accepted: 12/25/2023] [Indexed: 02/23/2024] Open
Abstract
As the cornerstone mission of the fourth phase of the Chinese Lunar Exploration Program, Chang'E-7 (CE-7) was officially approved, and implementation started in 2022, including a main probe and a communication relay satellite. The main probe, consisting of an orbiter, a lander, a rover and a mini-flying probe, is scheduled to be launched in 2026. The lander will land on Shackleton crater's illuminated rim near the lunar south pole, along with the rover and mini-flying probe. The relay satellite (named Queqiao-2) will be launched in February 2024 as an independent mission to support relay communication during scientific exploration undertaken by Chang'E-4, the upcoming Chang'E-6 in 2024 and subsequent lunar missions. The CE-7 mission is mainly aimed at scientific and resource exploration of the lunar south pole. We present CE-7's scientific objectives, the scientific payloads configuration and the main functions for each scientific payload with its key technical specifications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chi Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Space Weather, National Space Science Center, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
- National Space Science Center, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
| | - Yingzhuo Jia
- National Space Science Center, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
| | - Changbin Xue
- National Space Science Center, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
| | - Yangting Lin
- Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100029, China
| | - Jianzhong Liu
- Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guiyang 550081, China
| | - Xiaohui Fu
- Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Optical Astronomy and Solar-Terrestrial Environment, School of Space Science and Physics, Institute of Space Sciences, Shandong University, Weihai 264209, China
| | - Lin Xu
- National Space Science Center, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
| | - Yun Huang
- National Space Science Center, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
| | - Yufen Zhao
- Institute of Drug Discovery Technology, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315211, China
| | - Yigang Xu
- State Key Laboratory of Isotope Geochemistry, Guangzhou Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510640, China
| | - Rui Gao
- School of Earth Science and Engineering, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China
| | - Yong Wei
- Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100029, China
| | - Yuhua Tang
- Lunar Exploration and Space Engineering Center, Beijing 100190, China
| | - Dengyun Yu
- China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, Beijing 100048, China
| | - Yongliao Zou
- State Key Laboratory of Space Weather, National Space Science Center, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
- National Space Science Center, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
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9
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Zhao R, Shen L, Xiao D, Chang C, Huang Y, Yu J, Zhang H, Liu M, Zhao S, Yao W, Lu Z, Sun B, Bai H, Zou Z, Yang M, Wang W. Diverse glasses revealed from Chang'E-5 lunar regolith. Natl Sci Rev 2023; 10:nwad079. [PMID: 37954203 PMCID: PMC10632798 DOI: 10.1093/nsr/nwad079] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2022] [Revised: 02/13/2023] [Accepted: 02/23/2023] [Indexed: 11/14/2023] Open
Abstract
Lunar glasses with different origins act as snapshots of their formation processes, providing a rich archive of the Moon's formation and evolution. Here, we reveal diverse glasses from Chang'E-5 (CE-5) lunar regolith, and clarify their physical origins of liquid quenching, vapor deposition and irradiation damage respectively. The series of quenched glasses, including rotation-featured particles, vesicular agglutinates and adhered melts, record multiple-scale impact events. Abundant micro-impact products, like micron- to nano-scale glass droplets or craters, highlight that the regolith is heavily reworked by frequent micrometeorite bombardment. Distinct from Apollo samples, the indigenous ultra-elongated glass fibers drawn from viscous melts and the widespread ultra-thin deposited amorphous rims without nanophase iron particles both indicate a relatively gentle impact environment at the CE-5 landing site. The clarification of multitype CE-5 glasses also provides a catalogue of diverse lunar glasses, meaning that more of the Moon's mysteries, recorded in glasses, could be deciphered in future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rui Zhao
- Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
- Center of Materials Science and Optoelectronics Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Laiquan Shen
- Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
| | - Dongdong Xiao
- Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
| | - Chao Chang
- Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
- Center of Materials Science and Optoelectronics Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Yao Huang
- Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
- Center of Materials Science and Optoelectronics Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Jihao Yu
- Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
- Center of Materials Science and Optoelectronics Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Huaping Zhang
- Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
| | - Ming Liu
- Qian Xuesen Laboratory of Space Technology, China Academy of Space Technology, Beijing 100094, China
| | - Shaofan Zhao
- Qian Xuesen Laboratory of Space Technology, China Academy of Space Technology, Beijing 100094, China
| | - Wei Yao
- Qian Xuesen Laboratory of Space Technology, China Academy of Space Technology, Beijing 100094, China
| | - Zhen Lu
- Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
| | - Baoan Sun
- Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
- Songshan Lake Materials Laboratory, Dongguan 523808, China
| | - Haiyang Bai
- Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
- Center of Materials Science and Optoelectronics Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
- Songshan Lake Materials Laboratory, Dongguan 523808, China
| | - Zhigang Zou
- Qian Xuesen Laboratory of Space Technology, China Academy of Space Technology, Beijing 100094, China
- College of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210093, China
| | - Mengfei Yang
- Qian Xuesen Laboratory of Space Technology, China Academy of Space Technology, Beijing 100094, China
- China Academy of Space Technology, Beijing 100094, China
| | - Weihua Wang
- Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
- Songshan Lake Materials Laboratory, Dongguan 523808, China
- Qian Xuesen Laboratory of Space Technology, China Academy of Space Technology, Beijing 100094, China
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10
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Burgess KD, Cymes BA, Stroud RM. Hydrogen-bearing vesicles in space weathered lunar calcium-phosphates. COMMUNICATIONS EARTH & ENVIRONMENT 2023; 4:414. [PMID: 38665188 PMCID: PMC11041702 DOI: 10.1038/s43247-023-01060-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/17/2023] [Accepted: 10/18/2023] [Indexed: 04/28/2024]
Abstract
Water on the surface of the Moon is a potentially vital resource for future lunar bases and longer-range space exploration. Effective use of the resource depends on developing an understanding of where and how within the regolith the water is formed and retained. Solar wind hydrogen, which can form molecular hydrogen, water and/or hydroxyl on the lunar surface, reacts and is retained differently depending on regolith mineral content, thermal history, and other variables. Here we present transmission electron microscopy analyses of Apollo lunar soil 79221 that reveal solar-wind hydrogen concentrated in vesicles as molecular hydrogen in the calcium-phosphates apatite and merrillite. The location of the vesicles in the space weathered grain rims offers a clear link between the vesicle contents and solar wind irradiation, as well as individual grain thermal histories. Hydrogen stored in grain rims is a source for volatiles released in the exosphere during impacts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katherine D. Burgess
- Materials Science and Technology Division, U.S. Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, DC 20375 USA
| | - Brittany A. Cymes
- Materials Science and Technology Division, U.S. Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, DC 20375 USA
- Jacobs, NASA Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX 77058 USA
| | - Rhonda M. Stroud
- Materials Science and Technology Division, U.S. Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, DC 20375 USA
- School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287 USA
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11
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Flahaut J, van der Bogert CH, Crawford IA, Vincent-Bonnieu S. Scientific perspectives on lunar exploration in Europe. NPJ Microgravity 2023; 9:50. [PMID: 37355663 DOI: 10.1038/s41526-023-00298-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/29/2022] [Accepted: 06/15/2023] [Indexed: 06/26/2023] Open
Abstract
The Moon is a geological history book, preserving information about the history of the Solar System, including the formation and early evolution of the terrestrial planets and their bombardment histories, as well as providing insight into other fundamental Solar System processes. These topics form the basis for science "of the Moon", but the lunar surface is also a platform for science "on the Moon" and "from the Moon"-including astronomical observations, fundamental physics, and life science investigations. Recently, the Moon has become a destination for technology research and development-in particular for developing in situ resources, human exploration, and habitation, and for its potential use as a waypoint for the human exploration of Mars. This paper, based on recommendations originally proposed in a White Paper for ESA's SciSpacE strategy, outlines key lunar science questions that may be addressed by future space exploration missions and makes recommendations for the next decades.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica Flahaut
- CRPG, CNRS-UMR7358/Université de Lorraine, 54500, Vandœuvre-lès-Nancy, France.
| | | | - Ian A Crawford
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Birkbeck College London, Malet Street, London, WC1E 7HX, UK
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12
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Liu B. Reflectivity. ENCYCLOPEDIA OF LUNAR SCIENCE 2023:1030-1033. [DOI: 10.1007/978-3-319-14541-9_207] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/01/2023]
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13
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Chang’E-5 samples reveal high water content in lunar minerals. Nat Commun 2022; 13:5336. [PMID: 36088436 PMCID: PMC9464205 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-33095-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2022] [Accepted: 08/31/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
The formation and distribution of lunar surficial water remains ambiguous. Here, we show the prominence of water (OH/H2O) attributed to solar wind implantation on the uppermost surface of olivine, plagioclase, and pyroxene grains from Chang’E-5 samples. The results of spectral and microstructural analyses indicate that solar wind-derived water is affected by exposure time, crystal structure, and mineral composition. Our estimate of a minimum of 170 ppm water content in lunar soils in the Chang’E-5 region is consistent with that reported by the Moon Minerology Mapper and Chang’E-5 lander. By comparing with remote sensing data and through lunar soil maturity analysis, the amount of water in Chang’E-5 provides a reference for the distribution of surficial water in middle latitude of the Moon. We conclude that minerals in lunar soils are important reservoirs of water, and formation and retention of water originating from solar wind occurs on airless bodies. Lunar soils returned by China’s Chang’E−5 (CE5) mission record the unique information of solar wind essential to understanding the preservation and distribution of lunar surficial water. Here the authors report abundant water formed by solar wind implantation in minerals of CE5 lunar soils; the water content in CE5 lunar soils is estimated to be ~ 170 ppm.
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14
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Cremons DR, Honniball CI. Simulated Lunar Surface Hydration Measurements Using Multispectral Lidar at 3 µm. EARTH AND SPACE SCIENCE (HOBOKEN, N.J.) 2022; 9:e2022EA002277. [PMID: 36035964 PMCID: PMC9400864 DOI: 10.1029/2022ea002277] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2022] [Revised: 07/01/2022] [Accepted: 07/08/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Accurately measuring the variability of spectroscopic signatures of hydration (H2O + OH) on the illuminated lunar surface at 3 μm as a function of latitude, lunar time of day, and composition is crucial to determining the generation and destruction mechanisms of OH species and understanding the global water cycle. A prime complication in analysis of the spectroscopic feature is the accurate removal of thermal emission, which can modify or even eliminate the hydration feature depending on the data processing methods used and assumptions made. An orbital multispectral lidar, with laser illumination at key diagnostic wavelengths, would provide uniform, zero-phase geometry, complete latitude and time of day coverage from a circular polar orbit, and is agnostic to the thermal state of the surface. We have performed measurement simulations of a four-wavelength multispectral lidar using spectral mixtures of hydrated mid-ocean-ridge basalt (MORB) glasses and lunar regolith endmembers to assess the lidar performance in measuring hydration signatures on the lunar surface. Our results show a feasible system with wavelengths at 1.5 μm, 2.65 μm, 2.8 μm, and 3.1 μm can measure lunar hydration with a precision of 52 ppm (1σ) or better. These results, combined with the uniform measurement capabilities of multispectral lidar make it a valuable spectroscopic technique for elucidating mechanisms of OH/H2O generation, migration, and destruction.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - C. I. Honniball
- NASA Postdoctoral ProgramNASA Goddard Space Flight CenterGreenbeltMDUSA
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15
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Evidence of water on the lunar surface from Chang'E-5 in-situ spectra and returned samples. Nat Commun 2022; 13:3119. [PMID: 35701397 PMCID: PMC9198042 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-30807-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2021] [Accepted: 05/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
The distribution range, time-varying characteristics, and sources of lunar water are still controversial. Here we show the Chang’E-5 in-situ spectral observations of lunar water under Earth’s magnetosphere shielding and relatively high temperatures. Our results show the hydroxyl contents of lunar soils in Chang’E-5 landing site are with a mean value of 28.5 ppm, which is on the weak end of lunar hydration features. This is consistent with the predictions from remote sensing and ground-based telescopic data. Laboratory analysis of the Chang’E-5 returned samples also provide critical clues to the possible sources of these hydroxyl contents. Much less agglutinate glass contents suggest a weak contribution of solar wind implantation. Besides, the apatite present in the samples can provide hydroxyl contents in the range of 0 to 179 ± 13 ppm, which shows compelling evidence that, the hydroxyl-containing apatite may be an important source for the excess hydroxyl observed at this young mare region. Laboratory analysis of returned Chang’E-5 samples from the lunar surface show their hydroxyl contents to be on the weak end of lunar hydration features.
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16
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17
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Chen X, Kenyon ME, Johnson WR, Blacksberg J, Wilson DW, Raymond CA, Ehlmann BL. Mid- and long-wave infrared point spectrometer (MLPS): a miniature space-borne science instrument. OPTICS EXPRESS 2022; 30:17476-17489. [PMID: 36221570 DOI: 10.1364/oe.456057] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/11/2022] [Accepted: 03/14/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
The mid- and long-wave infrared point spectrometer (MLPS) is an infrared point spectrometer that utilizes unique technologies to meet the spectral coverage, spectral sampling, and field-of-view (FOV) requirements of many future space-borne missions in a small volume with modest power consumption. MLPS simultaneously acquires high resolution mid-wave infrared (∼2-4 µm) and long-wave infrared (∼5.5-11 µm) measurements from a single, integrated instrument. The broadband response of MLPS can measure spectroscopically resolved reflected and thermally emitted radiation from a wide range of targets and return compositional, mineralogic, and thermophysical science from a single data set. We have built a prototype MLPS and performed end-to-end testing under vacuum showing that the measured spectral response and the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) for both the mid-wave infrared (MIR) and long-wave infrared (LIR) channels of MLPS agree with established instrument models.
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18
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An Innovative Synthetic Aperture Radar Design Method for Lunar Water Ice Exploration. REMOTE SENSING 2022. [DOI: 10.3390/rs14092148] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Owing to the Moon’s rough surface, there is a growing controversy over the conclusion that water ice exists in the lunar permanently shadowed regions (PSRs) with a high circular polarization ratio (CPR). To further detect water ice on the Moon, an innovative design method for spaceborne synthetic aperture radar (SAR) system is proposed, to obtain radar data that can be used to distinguish water ice from lunar regolith with a small difference in the dielectric constants. According to Campbell’s dielectric constant model and the requirement that SAR radiometric resolution is smaller than the contrast of targets in images, a newly defined SAR system function involved in the method is presented to evaluate the influence of some system parameters on the water ice detection capability of SAR. In addition, several simulation experiments are performed, and the results demonstrate that the presented SAR design method may be helpful for lunar water ice exploration.
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19
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Ding L, Zhou R, Yuan Y, Yang H, Li J, Yu T, Liu C, Wang J, Li S, Gao H, Deng Z, Li N, Wang Z, Gong Z, Liu G, Xie J, Wang S, Rong Z, Deng D, Wang X, Han S, Wan W, Richter L, Huang L, Gou S, Liu Z, Yu H, Jia Y, Chen B, Dang Z, Zhang K, Li L, He X, Liu S, Di K. A 2-year locomotive exploration and scientific investigation of the lunar farside by the Yutu-2 rover. Sci Robot 2022; 7:eabj6660. [PMID: 35044796 DOI: 10.1126/scirobotics.abj6660] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
The lunar nearside has been investigated by many uncrewed and crewed missions, but the farside of the Moon remains poorly known. Lunar farside exploration is challenging because maneuvering rovers with efficient locomotion in harsh extraterrestrial environment is necessary to explore geological characteristics of scientific interest. Chang'E-4 mission successfully targeted the Moon's farside and deployed a teleoperated rover (Yutu-2) to explore inside the Von Kármán crater, conveying rich information regarding regolith, craters, and rocks. Here, we report mobile exploration on the lunar farside with Yutu-2 over the initial 2 years. During its journey, Yutu-2 has experienced varying degrees of mild slip and skid, indicating that the terrain is relatively flat at large scales but scattered with local gentle slopes. Cloddy soil sticking on its wheels implies a greater cohesion of the lunar soil than encountered at other lunar landing sites. Further identification results indicate that the regolith resembles dry sand and sandy loam on Earth in bearing properties, demonstrating greater bearing strength than that identified during the Apollo missions. In sharp contrast to the sparsity of rocks along the traverse route, small fresh craters with unilateral moldable ejecta are abundant, and some of them contain high-reflectance materials at the bottom, suggestive of secondary impact events. These findings hint at notable differences in the surface geology between the lunar farside and nearside. Experience gained with Yutu-2 improves the understanding of the farside of the Moon, which, in return, may lead to locomotion with improved efficiency and larger range.
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Affiliation(s)
- L Ding
- State Key Laboratory of Robotics and System, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150080, China
| | - R Zhou
- State Key Laboratory of Robotics and System, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150080, China
| | - Y Yuan
- State Key Laboratory of Robotics and System, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150080, China
| | - H Yang
- State Key Laboratory of Robotics and System, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150080, China
| | - J Li
- Beijing Aerospace Control Center, Beijing 100094, China
| | - T Yu
- Beijing Aerospace Control Center, Beijing 100094, China
| | - C Liu
- Beijing Aerospace Control Center, Beijing 100094, China.,Key Laboratory of Science and Technology on Aerospace Flight Dynamics, Beijing 100094, China
| | - J Wang
- Beijing Aerospace Control Center, Beijing 100094, China
| | - S Li
- State Key Laboratory of Robotics and System, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150080, China
| | - H Gao
- State Key Laboratory of Robotics and System, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150080, China
| | - Z Deng
- State Key Laboratory of Robotics and System, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150080, China
| | - N Li
- State Key Laboratory of Robotics and System, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150080, China
| | - Z Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Robotics and System, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150080, China
| | - Z Gong
- State Key Laboratory of Robotics and System, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150080, China
| | - G Liu
- Department of Aerospace Engineering, Ryerson University, Toronto, ON M5B 2K3, Canada
| | - J Xie
- Beijing Aerospace Control Center, Beijing 100094, China
| | - S Wang
- Beijing Aerospace Control Center, Beijing 100094, China
| | - Z Rong
- Beijing Aerospace Control Center, Beijing 100094, China
| | - D Deng
- Beijing Aerospace Control Center, Beijing 100094, China
| | - X Wang
- Beijing Aerospace Control Center, Beijing 100094, China.,Key Laboratory of Science and Technology on Aerospace Flight Dynamics, Beijing 100094, China
| | - S Han
- Beijing Aerospace Control Center, Beijing 100094, China
| | - W Wan
- State Key Laboratory of Remote Sensing Science, Aerospace Information Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
| | - L Richter
- Large Space Structures GmbH, Hauptstrasse 1, D-85386 Eching, Germany
| | - L Huang
- State Key Laboratory of Robotics and System, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150080, China
| | - S Gou
- State Key Laboratory of Remote Sensing Science, Aerospace Information Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
| | - Z Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Robotics and System, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150080, China
| | - H Yu
- State Key Laboratory of Robotics and System, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150080, China
| | - Y Jia
- China Academy of Space Technology, Beijing 100094, China
| | - B Chen
- China Academy of Space Technology, Beijing 100094, China
| | - Z Dang
- China Academy of Space Technology, Beijing 100094, China
| | - K Zhang
- Beijing Aerospace Control Center, Beijing 100094, China
| | - L Li
- Beijing Aerospace Control Center, Beijing 100094, China
| | - X He
- Beijing Aerospace Control Center, Beijing 100094, China
| | - S Liu
- Beijing Aerospace Control Center, Beijing 100094, China
| | - K Di
- State Key Laboratory of Remote Sensing Science, Aerospace Information Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
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20
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Depth to Diameter Analysis on Small Simple Craters at the Lunar South Pole—Possible Implications for Ice Harboring. REMOTE SENSING 2022. [DOI: 10.3390/rs14030450] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
In this paper, we present a study comparing the depth to diameter (d/D) ratio of small simple craters (200–1000 m) of an area between −88.5° to −90° latitude at the lunar south pole containing Permanent Shadowed Regions (PSRs) versus craters without PSRs. As PSRs can reach temperatures of 110 K and are capable of harboring volatiles, especially water ice, we analyzed the relationship of depth versus diameter ratios and its possible implications for harboring water ice. Variations in the d/D ratios can also be caused by other processes such as degradation, isostatic adjustment, or differences in surface properties. The conducted d/D ratio analysis suggests that a differentiation between craters containing PSRs versus craters without PSRs occurs. Thus, a possible direct relation between d/D ratio, PSRs, and water ice harboring might exist. Our results suggest that differences in the target’s surface properties may explain the obtained results. The resulting d/D ratios of craters with PSRs can help to select target areas for future In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) missions.
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21
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Gu Y, Yang R, Geng H, Wang Q, Hui H. Geological processes and products recorded in lunar soils: A review. CHINESE SCIENCE BULLETIN-CHINESE 2022. [DOI: 10.1360/tb-2021-1039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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22
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Calvaruso M, Militello C, Minafra L, La Regina V, Torrisi F, Pucci G, Cammarata FP, Bravatà V, Forte GI, Russo G. Biological and Mechanical Characterization of the Random Positioning Machine (RPM) for Microgravity Simulations. Life (Basel) 2021; 11:life11111190. [PMID: 34833068 PMCID: PMC8619501 DOI: 10.3390/life11111190] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2021] [Revised: 10/27/2021] [Accepted: 11/03/2021] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
The rapid improvement of space technologies is leading to the continuous increase of space missions that will soon bring humans back to the Moon and, in the coming future, toward longer interplanetary missions such as the one to Mars. The idea of living in space is charming and fascinating; however, the space environment is a harsh place to host human life and exposes the crew to many physical challenges. The absence of gravity experienced in space affects many aspects of human biology and can be reproduced in vitro with the help of microgravity simulators. Simulated microgravity (s-μg) is applied in many fields of research, ranging from cell biology to physics, including cancer biology. In our study, we aimed to characterize, at the biological and mechanical level, a Random Positioning Machine in order to simulate microgravity in an in vitro model of Triple-Negative Breast Cancer (TNBC). We investigated the effects played by s-μg by analyzing the change of expression of some genes that drive proliferation, survival, cell death, cancer stemness, and metastasis in the human MDA-MB-231 cell line. Besides the mechanical verification of the RPM used in our studies, our biological findings highlighted the impact of s-μg and its putative involvement in cancer progression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marco Calvaruso
- Institute of Molecular Bioimaging and Physiology, National Research Council (IBFM-CNR), 90015 Cefalù, Italy; (M.C.); (C.M.); (F.P.C.); (V.B.); (G.I.F.); (G.R.)
| | - Carmelo Militello
- Institute of Molecular Bioimaging and Physiology, National Research Council (IBFM-CNR), 90015 Cefalù, Italy; (M.C.); (C.M.); (F.P.C.); (V.B.); (G.I.F.); (G.R.)
| | - Luigi Minafra
- Institute of Molecular Bioimaging and Physiology, National Research Council (IBFM-CNR), 90015 Cefalù, Italy; (M.C.); (C.M.); (F.P.C.); (V.B.); (G.I.F.); (G.R.)
- Correspondence:
| | | | - Filippo Torrisi
- Departments of Biomedical and BioTechnological Science (BIOMETEC), University of Catania, 95123 Catania, Italy;
| | - Gaia Pucci
- Department of Biological, Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences and Technologies (STeBiCeF), University of Palermo, 90128 Palermo, Italy;
| | - Francesco P. Cammarata
- Institute of Molecular Bioimaging and Physiology, National Research Council (IBFM-CNR), 90015 Cefalù, Italy; (M.C.); (C.M.); (F.P.C.); (V.B.); (G.I.F.); (G.R.)
| | - Valentina Bravatà
- Institute of Molecular Bioimaging and Physiology, National Research Council (IBFM-CNR), 90015 Cefalù, Italy; (M.C.); (C.M.); (F.P.C.); (V.B.); (G.I.F.); (G.R.)
| | - Giusi I. Forte
- Institute of Molecular Bioimaging and Physiology, National Research Council (IBFM-CNR), 90015 Cefalù, Italy; (M.C.); (C.M.); (F.P.C.); (V.B.); (G.I.F.); (G.R.)
| | - Giorgio Russo
- Institute of Molecular Bioimaging and Physiology, National Research Council (IBFM-CNR), 90015 Cefalù, Italy; (M.C.); (C.M.); (F.P.C.); (V.B.); (G.I.F.); (G.R.)
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23
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Grava C, Killen RM, Benna M, Berezhnoy AA, Halekas JS, Leblanc F, Nishino MN, Plainaki C, Raines JM, Sarantos M, Teolis BD, Tucker OJ, Vervack RJ, Vorburger A. Volatiles and Refractories in Surface-Bounded Exospheres in the Inner Solar System. SPACE SCIENCE REVIEWS 2021; 217:61. [PMID: 34720217 PMCID: PMC8550778 DOI: 10.1007/s11214-021-00833-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2020] [Accepted: 05/21/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Volatiles and refractories represent the two end-members in the volatility range of species in any surface-bounded exosphere. Volatiles include elements that do not interact strongly with the surface, such as neon (detected on the Moon) and helium (detected both on the Moon and at Mercury), but also argon, a noble gas (detected on the Moon) that surprisingly adsorbs at the cold lunar nighttime surface. Refractories include species such as calcium, magnesium, iron, and aluminum, all of which have very strong bonds with the lunar surface and thus need energetic processes to be ejected into the exosphere. Here we focus on the properties of species that have been detected in the exospheres of inner Solar System bodies, specifically the Moon and Mercury, and how they provide important information to understand source and loss processes of these exospheres, as well as their dependence on variations in external drivers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cesare Grava
- Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX USA
| | | | - Mehdi Benna
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD USA
- University of Maryland Baltimore County, Baltimore, MD USA
| | - Alexey A Berezhnoy
- Sternberg Astronomical Institute, Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
- Institute of Physics, Kazan Federal University, Kazan, Russia
| | - Jasper S Halekas
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA USA
| | | | - Masaki N Nishino
- Institute of Space and Astronautical Science, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, Sagamihara, Kanagawa Japan
| | | | - Jim M Raines
- Department of Climate and Space Sciences and Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI USA
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24
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Heinicke C, Foing B. Human habitats: prospects for infrastructure supporting astronomy from the Moon. PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS. SERIES A, MATHEMATICAL, PHYSICAL, AND ENGINEERING SCIENCES 2021; 379:20190568. [PMID: 33222635 PMCID: PMC7739901 DOI: 10.1098/rsta.2019.0568] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 07/30/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
There is strong interest in lunar exploration from governmental space agencies, private companies and the public. NASA is about to send humans to the lunar surface again within the next few years, and ESA has proposed the concept of the Moon Village, with the goal of a sustainable human presence and activity on the lunar surface. Although construction of the infrastructure for this permanent human settlement is envisaged for the end of this decade by many, there is no definite mission plan yet. While this may be unsatisfactory for the impatient, this fact actually carries great potential: this is the optimal time to develop a forward-looking science input and influence mission planning. Based on data from recent missions (SMART-1, Kaguya, Chang'E, Chandrayaan-1 and LRO) as well as simulation campaigns (e.g. ILEWG EuroMoonMars), we provide initial input on how astronomy could be incorporated into a future Moon Village, and how the presence of humans (and robots) on the Moon could help deploy and maintain astronomical hardware. This article is part of a discussion meeting issue 'Astronomy from the Moon: the next decades'.
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Affiliation(s)
- C. Heinicke
- ZARM - Center of Applied Space Technology and Microgravity, University of Bremen, Am Fallturm 2, 28359 Bremen, Germany
| | - B. Foing
- ESA/ESTEC and ILEWG, PO Box 299, 2200 AG Noordwijk, The Netherlands
- Faculty of Earth and Life Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, De Boelelaan 1081–1087, 1081 HV Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Leiden University, Niels Bohrweg 2, 2333 CA Leiden, The Netherlands
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25
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Li S, Lucey PG, Fraeman AA, Poppe AR, Sun VZ, Hurley DM, Schultz PH. Widespread hematite at high latitudes of the Moon. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2020; 6:6/36/eaba1940. [PMID: 32917587 PMCID: PMC7467685 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.aba1940] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2019] [Accepted: 07/17/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Hematite (Fe2O3) is a common oxidization product on Earth, Mars, and some asteroids. Although oxidizing processes have been speculated to operate on the lunar surface and form ferric iron-bearing minerals, unambiguous detections of ferric minerals forming under highly reducing conditions on the Moon have remained elusive. Our analyses of the Moon Mineralogy Mapper data show that hematite, a ferric mineral, is present at high latitudes on the Moon, mostly associated with east- and equator-facing sides of topographic highs, and is more prevalent on the nearside than the farside. Oxygen delivered from Earth's upper atmosphere could be the major oxidant that forms lunar hematite. Hematite at craters of different ages may have preserved the oxygen isotopes of Earth's atmosphere in the past billions of years. Future oxygen isotope measurements can test our hypothesis and may help reveal the evolution of Earth's atmosphere.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shuai Li
- Hawai'i Institute of Geophysics and Planetology, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI 96822, USA.
| | - Paul G Lucey
- Hawai'i Institute of Geophysics and Planetology, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI 96822, USA
| | - Abigail A Fraeman
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA
| | - Andrew R Poppe
- Space Sciences Laboratory, University of California at Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Vivian Z Sun
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA
| | - Dana M Hurley
- Applied Physics Laboratory Johns Hopkins, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - Peter H Schultz
- Department of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912, USA
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26
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Liu B. Reflectivity. ENCYCLOPEDIA OF LUNAR SCIENCE 2020:1-5. [DOI: 10.1007/978-3-319-05546-6_207-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2019] [Accepted: 04/27/2020] [Indexed: 09/01/2023]
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27
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‘The most terrifying moments’: India counts down to risky Moon landing. Nature 2019; 573:13-14. [DOI: 10.1038/d41586-019-02587-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
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Zhu C, Crandall PB, Gillis-Davis JJ, Ishii HA, Bradley JP, Corley LM, Kaiser RI. Untangling the formation and liberation of water in the lunar regolith. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2019; 116:11165-11170. [PMID: 31110011 PMCID: PMC6561281 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1819600116] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The source of water (H2O) and hydroxyl radicals (OH), identified on the lunar surface, represents a fundamental, unsolved puzzle. The interaction of solar-wind protons with silicates and oxides has been proposed as a key mechanism, but laboratory experiments yield conflicting results that suggest that proton implantation alone is insufficient to generate and liberate water. Here, we demonstrate in laboratory simulation experiments combined with imaging studies that water can be efficiently generated and released through rapid energetic heating like micrometeorite impacts into anhydrous silicates implanted with solar-wind protons. These synergistic effects of solar-wind protons and micrometeorites liberate water at mineral temperatures from 10 to 300 K via vesicles, thus providing evidence of a key mechanism to synthesize water in silicates and advancing our understanding on the origin of water as detected on the Moon and other airless bodies in our solar system such as Mercury and asteroids.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cheng Zhu
- Department of Chemistry, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, Honolulu, HI 96822
- W. M. Keck Laboratory in Astrochemistry, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, Honolulu, HI 96822
| | - Parker B Crandall
- Department of Chemistry, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, Honolulu, HI 96822
- W. M. Keck Laboratory in Astrochemistry, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, Honolulu, HI 96822
| | - Jeffrey J Gillis-Davis
- Hawai'i Institute of Geophysics and Planetology, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, Honolulu, HI 96822
| | - Hope A Ishii
- Hawai'i Institute of Geophysics and Planetology, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, Honolulu, HI 96822
| | - John P Bradley
- Hawai'i Institute of Geophysics and Planetology, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, Honolulu, HI 96822
| | - Laura M Corley
- Hawai'i Institute of Geophysics and Planetology, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, Honolulu, HI 96822
| | - Ralf I Kaiser
- Department of Chemistry, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, Honolulu, HI 96822;
- W. M. Keck Laboratory in Astrochemistry, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, Honolulu, HI 96822
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Benna M, Hurley DM, Stubbs TJ, Mahaffy PR, Elphic RC. Lunar soil hydration constrained by exospheric water liberated by meteoroid impacts. NATURE GEOSCIENCE 2019; 12:333-338. [PMID: 32572337 PMCID: PMC7306913 DOI: 10.1038/s41561-019-0345-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2018] [Accepted: 03/11/2019] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
Analyses of samples from the Apollo missions suggest that the Moon formed devoid of native water. However, recent observations by Cassini, Deep Impact, Lunar Prospector and Chandrayaan-1 indicate the existence of an active water cycle on the Moon. Here we report observations of this water cycle, specifically detections of near-surface water released into the lunar exosphere by the Neutral Mass Spectrometer on the Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer. The timing of 29 water releases is associated with the Moon encountering known meteoroid streams. The intensities of these releases reflect the convoluted effects of the flux, velocity and impact location of the parent streams. We propose that four additional detected water releases represent the signature of previously undiscovered meteoroid streams. We show that water release from meteoroid impacts is indicative of a lunar surface that has a desiccated soil layer of several centimetres on top of uniformly hydrated soil. We infer that the Moon is currently in the process of losing water that was either delivered long ago or present at its formation.
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Affiliation(s)
- M. Benna
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD, USA
- CSST, University of Maryland, Baltimore County, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - D. M. Hurley
- The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD, USA
| | - T. J. Stubbs
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD, USA
| | - P. R. Mahaffy
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD, USA
| | - R. C. Elphic
- NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, USA
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30
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Design and Characterization of the Multi-Band SWIR Receiver for the Lunar Flashlight CubeSat Mission. REMOTE SENSING 2019. [DOI: 10.3390/rs11040440] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Lunar Flashlight (LF) is an innovative National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) CubeSat mission that is dedicated to quantifying and mapping the water ice that is harbored in the permanently shadowed craters of the lunar South Pole. The primary goal is to understand the lunar resource potential for future human exploration of the Moon. To this end, the LF spacecraft will carry an active multi-band reflectometer, based on an optical receiver aligned with four high-power diode lasers emitting in the 1 to 2-μm shortwave infrared band, to measure the reflectance of the lunar surface from orbit near water ice absorption peaks. We present the detailed optical, mechanical, and thermal design of the receiver, which is required to fabricate this instrument within very demanding CubeSat resource allocations. The receiver has been optimized for solar stray light rejection from outside its field of view, and utilizes a 70 × 70-mm, aluminum, off-axis paraboloidal mirror with a focal length of 70 mm, which collects the reflected light from the Moon surface onto a single-pixel InGaAs detector with a 2-mm diameter, hence providing a 20-mrad field of view. The characterization of the flight receiver is also presented, and the results are in agreement with the expected performance obtained from simulations. Planned to be launched by NASA on the first Space Launch System (SLS) test flight, this highly mass-constrained and volume-constrained instrument payload will demonstrate several firsts, including being one of the first instruments onboard a CubeSat performing science measurements beyond low Earth orbit, and the first planetary mission to use multi-band active reflectometry from orbit.
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31
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Li S, Lucey PG, Milliken RE, Hayne PO, Fisher E, Williams JP, Hurley DM, Elphic RC. Direct evidence of surface exposed water ice in the lunar polar regions. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2018; 115:8907-8912. [PMID: 30126996 PMCID: PMC6130389 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1802345115] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Water ice may be allowed to accumulate in permanently shaded regions on airless bodies in the inner solar system such as Mercury, the Moon, and Ceres [Watson K, et al. (1961) J Geophys Res 66:3033-3045]. Unlike Mercury and Ceres, direct evidence for water ice exposed at the lunar surface has remained elusive. We utilize indirect lighting in regions of permanent shadow to report the detection of diagnostic near-infrared absorption features of water ice in reflectance spectra acquired by the Moon Mineralogy Mapper [M (3)] instrument. Several thousand M (3) pixels (∼280 × 280 m) with signatures of water ice at the optical surface (depth of less than a few millimeters) are identified within 20° latitude of both poles, including locations where independent measurements have suggested that water ice may be present. Most ice locations detected in M (3) data also exhibit lunar orbiter laser altimeter reflectance values and Lyman Alpha Mapping Project instrument UV ratio values consistent with the presence of water ice and also exhibit annual maximum temperatures below 110 K. However, only ∼3.5% of cold traps exhibit ice exposures. Spectral modeling shows that some ice-bearing pixels may contain ∼30 wt % ice that is intimately mixed with dry regolith. The patchy distribution and low abundance of lunar surface-exposed water ice might be associated with the true polar wander and impact gardening. The observation of spectral features of H2O confirms that water ice is trapped and accumulates in permanently shadowed regions of the Moon, and in some locations, it is exposed at the modern optical surface.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shuai Li
- Department of Geology and Geophysics, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI 96822;
- Department of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912
| | - Paul G Lucey
- Department of Geology and Geophysics, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI 96822
| | - Ralph E Milliken
- Department of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912
| | - Paul O Hayne
- Department of Astrophysical & Planetary Sciences, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO 80309
| | - Elizabeth Fisher
- Department of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912
| | - Jean-Pierre Williams
- Department of Earth, Planetary, and Space Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095
| | - Dana M Hurley
- Applied Physics Laboratory, Johns Hopkins University, Laurel, MD 20723
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Schulze-Makuch D, Crawford IA. Was There an Early Habitability Window for Earth's Moon? ASTROBIOLOGY 2018; 18:985-988. [PMID: 30035616 PMCID: PMC6225594 DOI: 10.1089/ast.2018.1844] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2018] [Accepted: 06/20/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Dirk Schulze-Makuch
- Center for Astronomy and Astrophysics, Technical University Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- School of the Environment, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington, USA
| | - Ian A. Crawford
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Birkbeck College, University of London, London, UK
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33
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Neish CD, Lorenz RD, Turtle EP, Barnes JW, Trainer MG, Stiles B, Kirk R, Hibbitts CA, Malaska MJ. Strategies for Detecting Biological Molecules on Titan. ASTROBIOLOGY 2018; 18:571-585. [PMID: 29718687 DOI: 10.1089/ast.2017.1758] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Saturn's moon Titan has all the ingredients needed to produce "life as we know it." When exposed to liquid water, organic molecules analogous to those found on Titan produce a range of biomolecules such as amino acids. Titan thus provides a natural laboratory for studying the products of prebiotic chemistry. In this work, we examine the ideal locales to search for evidence of, or progression toward, life on Titan. We determine that the best sites to identify biological molecules are deposits of impact melt on the floors of large, fresh impact craters, specifically Sinlap, Selk, and Menrva craters. We find that it is not possible to identify biomolecules on Titan through remote sensing, but rather through in situ measurements capable of identifying a wide range of biological molecules. Given the nonuniformity of impact melt exposures on the floor of a weathered impact crater, the ideal lander would be capable of precision targeting. This would allow it to identify the locations of fresh impact melt deposits, and/or sites where the melt deposits have been exposed through erosion or mass wasting. Determining the extent of prebiotic chemistry within these melt deposits would help us to understand how life could originate on a world very different from Earth. Key Words: Titan-Prebiotic chemistry-Solar system exploration-Impact processes-Volcanism. Astrobiology 18, 571-585.
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Affiliation(s)
- Catherine D Neish
- 1 Department of Earth Sciences, The University of Western Ontario , London, Canada
| | - Ralph D Lorenz
- 2 The Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory , Laurel, Maryland
| | | | - Jason W Barnes
- 3 Department of Physics, University of Idaho , Moscow, Idaho
| | | | - Bryan Stiles
- 5 Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology , Pasadena, California
| | - Randolph Kirk
- 6 United States Geological Survey, Astrogeology Science Center , Flagstaff, Arizona
| | | | - Michael J Malaska
- 5 Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology , Pasadena, California
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34
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Ito G, Mishchenko MI, Glotch TD. Radiative-transfer modeling of spectra of planetary regoliths using cluster-based dense packing modifications. JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH. PLANETS 2018; 123:1203-1220. [PMID: 30319931 PMCID: PMC6178094 DOI: 10.1029/2018je005532] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2018] [Accepted: 03/30/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
In remote sensing of planetary bodies, the development of analysis techniques that lead to quantitative interpretations of datasets has relatively been deficient compared to the wealth of acquired data, especially in the case of regoliths with particle sizes on the order of the probing wavelength. Radiative transfer theory has often been applied to the study of densely packed particulate media like planetary regoliths, but with difficulty; here we continue to improve theoretical modeling of spectra of densely packed particulate media. We use the superposition T-matrix method to compute the scattering properties of an elementary volume entering the radiative transfer equation by modeling it as a cluster of particles and thereby capture the near-field effects important for dense packing. Then, these scattering parameters are modified with the static structure factor correction to suppress the irrelevant far-field diffraction peak rendered by the T-matrix procedure. Using the corrected single- scattering parameters, reflectance (and emissivity) is computed via the invariant-imbedding solution to the scalar radiative transfer equation. We modeled the emissivity spectrum of the 3.3 μm particle size fraction of enstatite, representing a common regolith component, in the mid-infrared (~5 - 50 μm). The use of the static structure factor correction coupled with the superposition T-matrix method produced better agreement with the corresponding laboratory spectrum than the sole use of the T-matrix method, particularly for volume scattering wavelengths (transparency features). This work demonstrates the importance of proper treatment of the packing effects when modeling semi-infinite densely packed particulate media using finite, cluster-based light scattering models.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gen Ito
- Stony Brook University, Department of Geosciences, Stony Brook, NY, USA
- NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, New York, NY, USA
| | | | - Timothy D. Glotch
- Stony Brook University, Department of Geosciences, Stony Brook, NY, USA
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35
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Bandfield JL, Poston MJ, Klima RL, Edwards CS. Widespread distribution of OH/H 2O on the lunar surface inferred from spectral data. NATURE GEOSCIENCE 2018; 11:173-177. [PMID: 29520302 PMCID: PMC5835832 DOI: 10.1038/s41561-018-0065-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/20/2017] [Accepted: 01/11/2018] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Remote sensing data from lunar orbiters have revealed spectral features consistent with the presence of OH or H2O on the lunar surface. Analyses of data from the Moon Mineralogy Mapper spectrometer onboard the Chandryaan-1 spacecraft have suggested that OH/H2O is recycled on diurnal timescales and persists only at high latitudes. However, the spatial distribution and temporal variability of the OH/H2O, as well as its source, remain uncertain. Here we incorporate a physics-based thermal correction into analysis of reflectance spectra from the Moon Mineralogy Mapper and find that prominent absorption features consistent with OH/H2O can be present at all latitudes, local times, and surface types examined. This suggests the widespread presence of OH/H2O on the lunar surface without significant diurnal migration. We suggest that the spectra are consistent with the production of OH in space weathered materials by the solar wind implantation of H+ and formation of OH at crystal defect sites, as opposed to H2O sourced from the lunar interior. Regardless of the specific composition or formation mechanism, we conclude that OH/H2O can be present on the Moon under thermal conditions more wide-ranging than previously recognized.
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36
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Wöhler C, Grumpe A, Berezhnoy AA, Shevchenko VV. Time-of-day-dependent global distribution of lunar surficial water/hydroxyl. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2017; 3:e1701286. [PMID: 28913430 PMCID: PMC5590783 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.1701286] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2017] [Accepted: 08/10/2017] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
A new set of time-of-day-dependent global maps of the lunar near-infrared water/hydroxyl (H2O/OH) absorption band strength near 2.8 to 3.0 μm constructed on the basis of Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3) data is presented. The analyzed absorption band near 2.8 to 3.0 μm indicates the presence of surficial H2O/OH. To remove the thermal emission component from the M3 reflectance spectra, a reliable and physically realistic mapping method has been developed. Our maps show that lunar highlands at high latitudes show a stronger H2O/OH absorption band in the lunar morning and evening than at midday. The amplitude of these time-of-day-dependent variations decreases with decreasing latitude of the highland regions, where below about 30°, absorption strength becomes nearly constant during the lunar day at a similar level as in the high-latitude highlands at midday. The lunar maria exhibit weaker H2O/OH absorption than the highlands at all, but showing a smaller difference from highlands absorption levels in the morning and evening than at midday. The level around midday is generally higher for low-Ti than for high-Ti mare surfaces, where it reaches near-zero values. Our observations contrast with previous studies that indicate a significant concentration of surficial H2O/OH at high latitudes only. Furthermore, although our results generally support the commonly accepted mechanism of H2O/OH formation by adsorption of solar wind protons, they suggest the presence of a more strongly bounded surficial H2O/OH component in the lunar highlands and parts of the mare regions, which is not removed by processes such as diffusion/thermal evaporation and photolysis in the course of the lunar day.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christian Wöhler
- Image Analysis Group, Technical University of Dortmund, Otto-Hahn-Str. 4, D-44227 Dortmund, Germany
| | - Arne Grumpe
- Image Analysis Group, Technical University of Dortmund, Otto-Hahn-Str. 4, D-44227 Dortmund, Germany
| | - Alexey A. Berezhnoy
- Sternberg Astronomical Institute, Moscow State University, Universitetskij pr., 13, 119234 Moscow, Russia
| | - Vladislav V. Shevchenko
- Sternberg Astronomical Institute, Moscow State University, Universitetskij pr., 13, 119234 Moscow, Russia
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37
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Li S, Milliken RE. Water on the surface of the Moon as seen by the Moon Mineralogy Mapper: Distribution, abundance, and origins. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2017; 3:e1701471. [PMID: 28924612 PMCID: PMC5597310 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.1701471] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2017] [Accepted: 08/13/2017] [Indexed: 05/31/2023]
Abstract
A new thermal correction model and experimentally validated relationships between absorption strength and water content have been used to construct the first global quantitative maps of lunar surface water derived from the Moon Mineralogy Mapper near-infrared reflectance data. We find that OH abundance increases as a function of latitude, approaching values of ~500 to 750 parts per million (ppm). Water content also increases with the degree of space weathering, consistent with the preferential retention of water originating from solar wind implantation during agglutinate formation. Anomalously high water contents indicative of interior magmatic sources are observed in several locations, but there is no global correlation between surface composition and water content. Surface water abundance can vary by ~200 ppm over a lunar day, and the upper meter of regolith may contain a total of ~1.2 × 1014 g of water averaged over the globe. Formation and migration of water toward cold traps may thus be a continuous process on the Moon and other airless bodies.
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38
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Klima RL, Petro NE. Remotely distinguishing and mapping endogenic water on the Moon. PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS. SERIES A, MATHEMATICAL, PHYSICAL, AND ENGINEERING SCIENCES 2017; 375:20150391. [PMID: 28416727 PMCID: PMC5394255 DOI: 10.1098/rsta.2015.0391] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 12/14/2016] [Indexed: 05/23/2023]
Abstract
Water and/or hydroxyl detected remotely on the lunar surface originates from several sources: (i) comets and other exogenous debris; (ii) solar-wind implantation; (iii) the lunar interior. While each of these sources is interesting in its own right, distinguishing among them is critical for testing hypotheses for the origin and evolution of the Moon and our Solar System. Existing spacecraft observations are not of high enough spectral resolution to uniquely characterize the bonding energies of the hydroxyl molecules that have been detected. Nevertheless, the spatial distribution and associations of H, OH- or H2O with specific lunar lithologies provide some insight into the origin of lunar hydrous materials. The global distribution of OH-/H2O as detected using infrared spectroscopic measurements from orbit is here examined, with particular focus on regional geological features that exhibit OH-/H2O absorption band strengths that differ from their immediate surroundings.This article is part of the themed issue 'The origin, history and role of water in the evolution of the inner Solar System'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rachel L Klima
- Space Exploration Sector, Planetary Exploration Group, Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, 11100 Johns Hopkins Road, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - Noah E Petro
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD, USA
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39
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Poppe AR, Halekas JS, Lue C, Fatemi S. ARTEMIS observations of the solar wind proton scattering function from lunar crustal magnetic anomalies. JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH. PLANETS 2017; 122:771-783. [PMID: 33442502 PMCID: PMC7802739 DOI: 10.1002/2017je005313] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Despite their small scales, lunar crustal magnetic fields are routinely associated with observations of reflected and/or backstreaming populations of solar wind protons. Solar wind proton reflection locally reduces the rate of space weathering of the lunar regolith, depresses local sputtering rates of neutrals into the lunar exosphere, and can trigger electromagnetic waves and small-scale collisionless shocks in the near-lunar space plasma environment. Thus, knowledge of both the magnitude and scattering function of solar wind protons from magnetic anomalies is crucial in understanding a wide variety of planetary phenomena at the Moon. We have compiled 5.5 years of ARTEMIS (Acceleration, Reconnection, Turbulence and Electrodynamics of the Moon's Interaction with the Sun) observations of reflected protons at the Moon and used a Liouville tracing method to ascertain each proton's reflection location and scattering angles. We find that solar wind proton reflection is largely correlated with crustal magnetic field strength, with anomalies such as South Pole/Aitken Basin (SPA), Mare Marginis, and Gerasimovich reflecting on average 5-12% of the solar wind flux while the unmagnetized surface reflects between 0.1 and 1% in charged form. We present the scattering function of solar wind protons off of the SPA anomaly, showing that the scattering transitions from isotropic at low solar zenith angles to strongly forward scattering at solar zenith angles near 90°. Such scattering is consistent with simulations that have suggested electrostatic fields as the primary mechanism for solar wind proton reflection from crustal magnetic anomalies.
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Affiliation(s)
- A. R. Poppe
- Space Sciences Laboratory, University of California, Berkeley, California, USA
- Solar System Exploration Research Virtual Institute, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, California, USA
| | - J. S. Halekas
- Solar System Exploration Research Virtual Institute, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, California, USA
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, USA
| | - C. Lue
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, USA
| | - S. Fatemi
- Space Sciences Laboratory, University of California, Berkeley, California, USA
- Solar System Exploration Research Virtual Institute, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, California, USA
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40
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Pieters CM, Noble SK. Space Weathering on Airless Bodies. JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH. PLANETS 2016; 121:1865-1884. [PMID: 29862145 PMCID: PMC5975224 DOI: 10.1002/2016je005128] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/26/2023]
Abstract
Space weathering refers to alteration that occurs in the space environment with time. Lunar samples, and to some extent meteorites, have provided a benchmark for understanding the processes and products of space weathering. Lunar soils are derived principally from local materials but have accumulated a range of optically active opaque particles (OAOpq) that include nanophase metallic iron on/in rims formed on individual grains (imparting a red slope to visible and near-infrared reflectance) and larger iron particles (which darken across all wavelengths) such as are often found within the interior of recycled grains. Space weathering of other anhydrous silicate bodies, such as Mercury and some asteroids, produce different forms and relative abundance of OAOpq particles depending on the particular environment. If the development of OAOpq particles is minimized (such as at Vesta), contamination by exogenic material and regolith mixing become the dominant space weathering processes. Volatile-rich bodies and those composed of abundant hydrous minerals (dwarf planet Ceres, many dark asteroids, outer solar system satellites) are affected by space weathering processes differently than the silicate bodies of the inner solar system. However, the space weathering products of these bodies are currently poorly understood and the physics and chemistry of space weathering processes in different environments are areas of active research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carle M Pieters
- Department of Earth, Environmental, and Planetary Sciences, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912
| | - Sarah K Noble
- Planetary Science Division, NASA Headquarters, Washington DC, 20546, one: 202-358-2492
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41
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Livengood T, Chin G, Sagdeev R, Mitrofanov I, Boynton W, Evans L, Litvak M, McClanahan T, Sanin A, Starr R, Su J. Moonshine: Diurnally varying hydration through natural distillation on the Moon, detected by the Lunar Exploration Neutron Detector (LEND). ICARUS 2015; 255:100-115. [PMID: 28798496 PMCID: PMC5548521 DOI: 10.1016/j.icarus.2015.04.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/01/2023]
Abstract
The Lunar Exploration Neutron Detector (LEND), on the polar-orbiting Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) spacecraft, has detected suppression in the Moon's naturally-occurring epithermal neutron leakage flux that is consistent with the presence of diurnally varying quantities of hydrogen in the regolith near the equator. Peak hydrogen concentration (neutron flux suppression) is on the dayside of the dawn terminator and diminishes through the dawn-to-noon sector. The minimum concentration of hydrogen is in the late afternoon and dusk sector. The chemical form of hydrogen is not determinable from these measurements, but other remote sensing methods and anticipated elemental availability suggest water molecules or hydroxyl ions. Signal-to-noise ratio at maximum contrast is 5.6σ in each of two detector systems. Volatiles are deduced to collect in or on the cold nightside surface and distill out of the regolith after dawn as rotation exposes the surface to sunlight. Liberated volatiles migrate away from the warm subsolar region toward the nearby cold nightside surface beyond the terminator, resulting in maximum concentration at the dawn terminator. The peak concentration within the upper ~1 m of regolith is estimated to be 0.0125 ± 0.0022 weight-percent water-equivalent hydrogen (wt% WEH) at dawn, yielding an accumulation of 190 ± 30 ml recoverable water per square meter of regolith at each dawn. Volatile transport over the lunar surface in opposition to the Moon's rotation exposes molecules to solar ultraviolet radiation. The short lifetime against photolysis and permanent loss of hydrogen from the Moon requires a resupply rate that greatly exceeds anticipated delivery of hydrogen by solar wind implantation or by meteoroid impacts, suggesting that the surface inventory must be continually resupplied by release from a deep volatile inventory in the Moon. The natural distillation of water from the regolith by sunlight and its capture on the cold night surface may provide energy-efficient access to volatiles for in situ resource utilization (ISRU) by direct capture before volatiles can enter the surface, eliminating the need to actively mine regolith for volatile resource recovery.
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Affiliation(s)
- T.A. Livengood
- CRESST/University of Maryland at Planetary Systems Laboratory, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771, United States
| | - G. Chin
- Planetary Systems Laboratory, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771, United States
| | - R.Z. Sagdeev
- Department of Physics, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, United States
| | | | - W.V. Boynton
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721, United States
| | - L.G. Evans
- Computer Sciences Corporation, Lanham-Seabrook, MD 20706, United States
| | - M.L. Litvak
- Institute for Space Research, Moscow, Russia
| | - T.P. McClanahan
- Astrochemistry Laboratory, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771, United States
| | - A.B. Sanin
- Institute for Space Research, Moscow, Russia
| | - R.D. Starr
- Department of Physics, Catholic University of America, Washington, DC 20064, United States
| | - J.J. Su
- Department of Physics, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, United States
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Schimel D, Pavlick R, Fisher JB, Asner GP, Saatchi S, Townsend P, Miller C, Frankenberg C, Hibbard K, Cox P. Observing terrestrial ecosystems and the carbon cycle from space. GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY 2015; 21:1762-76. [PMID: 25472464 DOI: 10.1111/gcb.12822] [Citation(s) in RCA: 140] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2014] [Revised: 11/05/2014] [Accepted: 11/08/2014] [Indexed: 05/20/2023]
Abstract
Terrestrial ecosystem and carbon cycle feedbacks will significantly impact future climate, but their responses are highly uncertain. Models and tipping point analyses suggest the tropics and arctic/boreal zone carbon-climate feedbacks could be disproportionately large. In situ observations in those regions are sparse, resulting in high uncertainties in carbon fluxes and fluxes. Key parameters controlling ecosystem carbon responses, such as plant traits, are also sparsely observed in the tropics, with the most diverse biome on the planet treated as a single type in models. We analyzed the spatial distribution of in situ data for carbon fluxes, stocks and plant traits globally and also evaluated the potential of remote sensing to observe these quantities. New satellite data products go beyond indices of greenness and can address spatial sampling gaps for specific ecosystem properties and parameters. Because environmental conditions and access limit in situ observations in tropical and arctic/boreal environments, use of space-based techniques can reduce sampling bias and uncertainty about tipping point feedbacks to climate. To reliably detect change and develop the understanding of ecosystems needed for prediction, significantly, more data are required in critical regions. This need can best be met with a strategic combination of remote and in situ data, with satellite observations providing the dense sampling in space and time required to characterize the heterogeneity of ecosystem structure and function.
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Affiliation(s)
- David Schimel
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, 91101, USA
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Matthewman R, Court RW, Crawford IA, Jones AP, Joy KH, Sephton MA. The Moon as a recorder of organic evolution in the early solar system: a lunar regolith analog study. ASTROBIOLOGY 2015; 15:154-168. [PMID: 25615648 PMCID: PMC4322787 DOI: 10.1089/ast.2014.1217] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2014] [Accepted: 12/06/2014] [Indexed: 06/04/2023]
Abstract
The organic record of Earth older than ∼3.8 Ga has been effectively erased. Some insight is provided to us by meteorites as well as remote and direct observations of asteroids and comets left over from the formation of the Solar System. These primitive objects provide a record of early chemical evolution and a sample of material that has been delivered to Earth's surface throughout the past 4.5 billion years. Yet an effective chronicle of organic evolution on all Solar System objects, including that on planetary surfaces, is more difficult to find. Fortunately, early Earth would not have been the only recipient of organic matter-containing objects in the early Solar System. For example, a recently proposed model suggests the possibility that volatiles, including organic material, remain archived in buried paleoregolith deposits intercalated with lava flows on the Moon. Where asteroids and comets allow the study of processes before planet formation, the lunar record could extend that chronicle to early biological evolution on the planets. In this study, we use selected free and polymeric organic materials to assess the hypothesis that organic matter can survive the effects of heating in the lunar regolith by overlying lava flows. Results indicate that the presence of lunar regolith simulant appears to promote polymerization and, therefore, preservation of organic matter. Once polymerized, the mineral-hosted newly formed organic network is relatively protected from further thermal degradation. Our findings reveal the thermal conditions under which preservation of organic matter on the Moon is viable.
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Affiliation(s)
- Richard Matthewman
- Impacts and Astromaterials Research Centre, Department of Earth Science and Engineering, South Kensington Campus, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Richard W. Court
- Impacts and Astromaterials Research Centre, Department of Earth Science and Engineering, South Kensington Campus, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Ian A. Crawford
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Birkbeck College, University of London, London, UK
| | - Adrian P. Jones
- Department of Earth Sciences, University College London, London, UK
| | - Katherine H. Joy
- School of Earth, Atmospheric and Environmental Sciences, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK
| | - Mark A. Sephton
- Impacts and Astromaterials Research Centre, Department of Earth Science and Engineering, South Kensington Campus, Imperial College London, London, UK
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Abstract
Recent data from Apollo samples demonstrate the presence of water in the lunar interior and at the surface, challenging previous assumption that the Moon was free of water. However, the source(s) of this water remains enigmatic. The external flux of particles and solid materials that reach the surface of the airless Moon constitute a hydrogen (H) surface reservoir that can be converted to water (or OH) during proton implantation in rocks or remobilization during magmatic events. Our original goal was thus to quantify the relative contributions to this H surface reservoir. To this end, we report NanoSIMS measurements of D/H and (7)Li/(6)Li ratios on agglutinates, volcanic glasses, and plagioclase grains from the Apollo sample collection. Clear correlations emerge between cosmogenic D and (6)Li revealing that almost all D is produced by spallation reactions both on the surface and in the interior of the grains. In grain interiors, no evidence of chondritic water has been found. This observation allows us to constrain the H isotopic ratio of hypothetical juvenile lunar water to δD ≤ -550‰. On the grain surface, the hydroxyl concentrations are significant and the D/H ratios indicate that they originate from solar wind implantation. The scattering distribution of the data around the theoretical D vs. (6)Li spallation correlation is compatible with a chondritic contribution <15%. In conclusion, (i) solar wind implantation is the major mechanism responsible for hydroxyls on the lunar surface, and (ii) the postulated chondritic lunar water is not retained in the regolith.
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Anand M, Tartèse R, Barnes JJ. Understanding the origin and evolution of water in the Moon through lunar sample studies. PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS. SERIES A, MATHEMATICAL, PHYSICAL, AND ENGINEERING SCIENCES 2014; 372:20130254. [PMID: 25114308 PMCID: PMC4128269 DOI: 10.1098/rsta.2013.0254] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/23/2023]
Abstract
A paradigm shift has recently occurred in our knowledge and understanding of water in the lunar interior. This has transpired principally through continued analysis of returned lunar samples using modern analytical instrumentation. While these recent studies have undoubtedly measured indigenous water in lunar samples they have also highlighted our current limitations and some future challenges that need to be overcome in order to fully understand the origin, distribution and evolution of water in the lunar interior. Another exciting recent development in the field of lunar science has been the unambiguous detection of water or water ice on the surface of the Moon through instruments flown on a number of orbiting spacecraft missions. Considered together, sample-based studies and those from orbit strongly suggest that the Moon is not an anhydrous planetary body, as previously believed. New observations and measurements support the possibility of a wet lunar interior and the presence of distinct reservoirs of water on the lunar surface. Furthermore, an approach combining measurements of water abundance in lunar samples and its hydrogen isotopic composition has proved to be of vital importance to fingerprint and elucidate processes and source(s) involved in giving rise to the lunar water inventory. A number of sources are likely to have contributed to the water inventory of the Moon ranging from primordial water to meteorite-derived water ice through to the water formed during the reaction of solar wind hydrogen with the lunar soil. Perhaps two of the most striking findings from these recent studies are the revelation that at least some portions of the lunar interior are as water-rich as some Mid-Ocean Ridge Basalt source regions on Earth and that the water in the Earth and the Moon probably share a common origin.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mahesh Anand
- Department of Physical Sciences, The Open University, Milton Keynes MK7 6AA, UK Department of Earth Sciences, The Natural History Museum, London SW7 5BD, UK
| | - Romain Tartèse
- Department of Physical Sciences, The Open University, Milton Keynes MK7 6AA, UK
| | - Jessica J Barnes
- Department of Physical Sciences, The Open University, Milton Keynes MK7 6AA, UK Department of Earth Sciences, The Natural History Museum, London SW7 5BD, UK
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Crawford IA, Joy KH. Lunar exploration: opening a window into the history and evolution of the inner Solar System. PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS. SERIES A, MATHEMATICAL, PHYSICAL, AND ENGINEERING SCIENCES 2014; 372:20130315. [PMID: 25114318 PMCID: PMC4128274 DOI: 10.1098/rsta.2013.0315] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/03/2023]
Abstract
The lunar geological record contains a rich archive of the history of the inner Solar System, including information relevant to understanding the origin and evolution of the Earth-Moon system, the geological evolution of rocky planets, and our local cosmic environment. This paper provides a brief review of lunar exploration to-date and describes how future exploration initiatives will further advance our understanding of the origin and evolution of the Moon, the Earth-Moon system and of the Solar System more generally. It is concluded that further advances will require the placing of new scientific instruments on, and the return of additional samples from, the lunar surface. Some of these scientific objectives can be achieved robotically, for example by in situ geochemical and geophysical measurements and through carefully targeted sample return missions. However, in the longer term, we argue that lunar science would greatly benefit from renewed human operations on the surface of the Moon, such as would be facilitated by implementing the recently proposed Global Exploration Roadmap.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ian A Crawford
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Birkbeck College, University of London, Malet Street, London WC1E 7HX, UK Centre for Planetary Sciences at UCL/Birkbeck, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT, UK
| | - Katherine H Joy
- School of Earth, Atmospheric and Environmental Sciences, University of Manchester, Williamson Building, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PL, UK
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47
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Detection of solar wind-produced water in irradiated rims on silicate minerals. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2014; 111:1732-5. [PMID: 24449869 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1320115111] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The solar wind (SW), composed of predominantly ∼1-keV H(+) ions, produces amorphous rims up to ∼150 nm thick on the surfaces of minerals exposed in space. Silicates with amorphous rims are observed on interplanetary dust particles and on lunar and asteroid soil regolith grains. Implanted H(+) may react with oxygen in the minerals to form trace amounts of hydroxyl (-OH) and/or water (H2O). Previous studies have detected hydroxyl in lunar soils, but its chemical state, physical location in the soils, and source(s) are debated. If -OH or H2O is generated in rims on silicate grains, there are important implications for the origins of water in the solar system and other astrophysical environments. By exploiting the high spatial resolution of transmission electron microscopy and valence electron energy-loss spectroscopy, we detect water sealed in vesicles within amorphous rims produced by SW irradiation of silicate mineral grains on the exterior surfaces of interplanetary dust particles. Our findings establish that water is a byproduct of SW space weathering. We conclude, on the basis of the pervasiveness of the SW and silicate materials, that the production of radiolytic SW water on airless bodies is a ubiquitous process throughout the solar system.
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Bennett CJ, Pirim C, Orlando TM. Space-Weathering of Solar System Bodies: A Laboratory Perspective. Chem Rev 2013; 113:9086-150. [DOI: 10.1021/cr400153k] [Citation(s) in RCA: 107] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Chris J. Bennett
- Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, Georgia Institute of Technology, 901 Atlantic Drive, Atlanta, Georgia 30332, United States
| | - Claire Pirim
- Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, Georgia Institute of Technology, 901 Atlantic Drive, Atlanta, Georgia 30332, United States
| | - Thomas M. Orlando
- Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, Georgia Institute of Technology, 901 Atlantic Drive, Atlanta, Georgia 30332, United States
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49
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Saal AE, Hauri EH, Van Orman JA, Rutherford MJ. Hydrogen isotopes in lunar volcanic glasses and melt inclusions reveal a carbonaceous chondrite heritage. Science 2013; 340:1317-20. [PMID: 23661641 DOI: 10.1126/science.1235142] [Citation(s) in RCA: 177] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
Water is perhaps the most important molecule in the solar system, and determining its origin and distribution in planetary interiors has important implications for understanding the evolution of planetary bodies. Here we report in situ measurements of the isotopic composition of hydrogen dissolved in primitive volcanic glass and olivine-hosted melt inclusions recovered from the Moon by the Apollo 15 and 17 missions. After consideration of cosmic-ray spallation and degassing processes, our results demonstrate that lunar magmatic water has an isotopic composition that is indistinguishable from that of the bulk water in carbonaceous chondrites and similar to that of terrestrial water, implying a common origin for the water contained in the interiors of Earth and the Moon.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alberto E Saal
- Department of Geological Sciences, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912, USA.
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50
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Boynton WV, Droege GF, Mitrofanov IG, McClanahan TP, Sanin AB, Litvak ML, Schaffner M, Chin G, Evans LG, Garvin JB, Harshman K, Malakhov A, Milikh G, Sagdeev R, Starr R. High spatial resolution studies of epithermal neutron emission from the lunar poles: Constraints on hydrogen mobility. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2012. [DOI: 10.1029/2011je003979] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
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