Lunar water

Lunar water includes water ice and water molecules or hydroxyl bound to minerals on the Moon. Its distribution reflects cold trapping, surface chemistry, and geological history.

Cold trap (astronomy): A permanently or temporarily cold region where volatile substances can accumulate because they evaporate slowly. Permanently shadowed lunar craters can trap water ice for billions of years.
Apollo program: A NASA human spaceflight program that landed astronauts on the Moon between 1969 and 1972. Apollo samples initially encouraged the view that the Moon was extremely dry.
In-situ resource utilization: The use of local materials to support operations in space rather than transporting all supplies from Earth. Lunar water is a potential local feedstock for life support and propellant.
Water ice: The solid crystalline form of water, H₂O, stable at sufficiently low temperatures. Polar lunar ice is a distinct target from hydrogen or hydroxyl detected in surface minerals.
Permanently shadowed region: A surface area that receives no direct sunlight over long periods because of local topography and low solar elevation. These lunar polar areas are among the strongest candidate reservoirs for accessible ice.
Lunar Prospector: A NASA spacecraft that orbited the Moon from 1998 to 1999 to map its composition and gravitational field. Its neutron measurements suggested enhanced hydrogen near the lunar poles.
Lunar IceCube: A NASA CubeSat mission that observed the Moon from lunar orbit to investigate water and other volatiles. Its compact instruments were intended to characterize water signatures relevant to resource prospecting.
Molecular water: Water consisting of discrete H₂O molecules rather than hydrogen and oxygen bound separately in other compounds. Some lunar observations indicate H₂O molecules, while others detect only broader hydration signatures.
Lunar water cycle: The exchange of water among lunar minerals, the surface, the exosphere, and cold traps. Solar heating and impact gardening can release water that later migrates toward colder ground.
Chandrayaan-1: India’s first lunar probe, which orbited the Moon from 2008 to 2009 and carried international instruments. Its Moon Mineralogy Mapper data helped reveal widespread hydroxyl or water signatures.

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