NASA Estimates 600 Million Metric Tons of Water Ice At Moon's North Pole

After analyzing data from a radar device aboard last year's Indian Chandrayaan-1 mission to the Moon, NASA scientists have found what they estimate to be 600 million metric tons of water ice in craters around the Moon's north pole. "Numerous craters near the poles of the Moon have interiors that are in permanent sun shadow. These areas are very cold and water ice is stable there essentially indefinitely. Fresh craters show high degrees of surface roughness (high circular polarization ratio) both inside and outside the crater rim, caused by sharp rocks and block fields that are distributed over the entire crater area. However, Mini-SAR has found craters near the north pole that have high CPR inside, but not outside their rims. This relation suggests that the high CPR is not caused by roughness, but by some material that is restricted within the interiors of these craters. We interpret this relation as consistent with water ice present in these craters. The ice must be relatively pure and at least a couple of meters thick to give this signature."

Comments

Re:Send up some miners

[elrous0]

Only in this case it's a barren way station that only leads to other barren rocks. If there were a planet out there in this solar system that had earth-like atmospheric pressure, a reasonable amount of oxygen, some sort of radiation-shielding atmosphere, etc. I could see that as an argument. But there is nothing out there even remotely survivable or sustainable. There is no end-game here. The moon is just a pointless exercise that only leads to other, even more pointless, exercises. There is no Napa Valley or gold mine waiting on the other side of those plains.

And at least Kansas was a place where you could grow wheat.