Moon South & North Pole Craters Confirmed As ‘Traps’ For Water Ice Deposited By Asteroids
Valery Shuvalov Of Moscow Institute Of Physics & Technology Study Shows Common Asteroids Are Up To 10% H2O & Crystal Lattice Of Minerals Keeps H2O Protected From Heat; 1/3 Of Asteroids Fall On Moon At 14/km/s, 30-40% Remain Intact After Oblique Impact, 60-70% From Vertical Impact; LRO, Chandrayaan & Cassini Missions Providing Data Of Water & Hydroxyl Buried Under Moon Soil; Russia LEND, Mounted On LRO Mapping Flux Of Neutrons To Search For Water Ice In Polar Regions In “Cold Traps”; Presence Of Water Ice Vital For Human Settlement
Credit: NASA, MIPT, LRO
LRO Detailed Mapping With Laser Altimetry & Moon South / North Pole Region Assessment Inspires Researchers Including Andreas Velten From University Of Wisconsin-Madison Laboratory For Optical & Computational Instrumentation (LOCI); Velten Developing Technology With Ability To “See Around Corners” On Lunar Surface / In Lunar Caves With Laser Light Pulses To Allow For Water / Other Volatile Discoveries Without Excavation; LRO Will Continue Search For New Impacts & Characterize Radiation Environment, Data Release 23 Expected In September
Mapping Lunar Surface & Collecting Information About Moon Environment, LRO Entering Year 7, Flying In Elliptical Orbit 20km Over South Pole / 165km North Pole, With An Orbital Period Of ~115 Mins; US$19M Highlighted In NASA Budget Request For FY2016 Per The House Of Representatives Commerce Justice Science (CJS) Appropriations Bill (H.R. 2578) On 3 June 2015
