A new study suggests that rough areas on the moon’s surface block sunlight and permit water ice to form across wide areas.
The U.S. space agency NASA already confirmed last year that results from two studies suggested water ice likely existed across much of the moon’s surface, even during daytime.
One of those studies centered on so-called “cold traps” observed on the moon that hold frozen water. These areas exist in a state of permanent darkness because temperatures are below about minus 160 degrees Celsius.
Until now, scientists have not been sure what was permitting these traps to exist. Especially since the moon does not have a thick atmosphere to help water survive. One theory was that water molecules could be trapped on the lunar surface inside rock or other material that resulted from meteorite strikes.
But a new study by NASA researchers provides another possible explanation for how water ice could remain in many areas of the moon’s surface. It presents evidence that the rough, rocky surface creates shadows that permit water ice to survive.
The researchers note that past observations suggested there were movements of water through the lunar day. A lunar day is the time it takes for one point on the Earth to make one complete rotation and end up at the same point in relation to the moon.
Studies have provided evidence that the amount of water decreased on the moon’s surface when sunlight was brightest and increased with less sunlight.
The latest study was led by Björn Davidsson, a scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in California. He teamed up with another JPL researcher, Sona Hosseini, to carry out the research.
This illustration shows an area of the moon’s surface where shadows may enable water ice to survive on the sunlit lunar surface. When shadows move as the Sun tracks overhead, the exposed frost lingers long enough to be identified by spacecraft. (NASA)
The team revised past computer modeling to include rough surface areas of the moon that can be seen in images collected from NASA’s Apollo missions from 1969 to 1972. The research results recently appeared in the publication Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.
The study suggests that as surface frost that forms in cold areas receives sunlight, it can then be “cycled into the moon’s exosphere.” The exosphere is the thin, outer area that forms around a planet or satellite object, such as the moon.
“Frost is far more mobile than trapped water,” Davidsson said in a statement. “Therefore, this model provides a new mechanism that explains how water moves between the lunar surface and the thin lunar atmosphere.”
The researchers say their study is the first to examine how shadows on the lunar surface can affect the ability of water molecules to survive as frost during the daytime.
Another theory states that water molecules are trapped within lunar material (left). But the new study suggests that water molecules (right) remain as frost on the surface in cold shadows and move to other cold locations via the thin exosphere. (NASA)
They noted that such research is important to help scientists better understand how water enters and leaves the moon’s exosphere.
Hosseini said understanding water as a resource is “essential” for future NASA missions or any possible private space exploration. She added if water ice is available in sunlit areas of the moon, future explorers could use it for fuel and drinking water.
“But first, we need to figure out how the exosphere and surface interact and what role that plays in the cycle,” Hosseini said.
The researchers say they plan to test their theory by leading a team to develop small sensors to measure signals given off by a molecule contained in water ice. The sensing device will be designed to be used on small landers or robotic explorers that could be sent to the moon in future missions.
I’m Bryan Lynn.
Bryan Lynn wrote this report for VOA Learning English, based on reports from NASA and Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.Hai Dowas the editor.
NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — The body of Ugandan Olympic athlete Rebecca Cheptegei — who died after being set on fire by her partner in Kenya — was received Friday by family and anti-femicide crusaders, ahead of her burial a day later.
Cheptegei’s family met with dozens of activists Friday who had marched to the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital’s morgue in the western city of Eldoret while chanting anti-femicide slogans.
She is the fourth female athlete to have been killed by her partner in Kenya in yet another case of gender-based violence in recent years.
Viola Cheptoo, the founder of Tirop Angels – an organization that was formed in honor of athlete Agnes Tirop, who was stabbed to death in 2021, said stakeholders need to ensure this is the last death of an athlete due to gender-based violence.
“We are here to say that enough is enough, we are tired of burying our sisters due to GBV,” she said.
It was a somber mood at the morgue as athletes and family members viewed Cheptegei’s body which sustained 80% of burns after she was doused with gasoline by her partner Dickson Ndiema. Ndiema sustained 30% burns on his body and later succumbed.
Ndiema and Cheptegei were said to have quarreled over a piece of land that the athlete bought in Kenya, according to a report filed by the local chief.
Cheptegei competed in the women’s marathon at the Paris Olympics less than a month before the attack. She finished in 44th place.
Cheptegei’s father, Joseph, said that the body will make a brief stop at their home in the Endebess area before proceeding to Bukwo in eastern Uganda for a night vigil and burial on Saturday.
“We are in the final part of giving my daughter the last respect,” a visibly distraught Joseph said.
He told reporters last week that Ndiema was stalking and threatening Cheptegei and the family had informed police.
Four in 10 women or an estimated 41% of dating or married Kenyan women have experienced physical or sexual violence perpetrated by their current or most recent partner, according to the Kenya Demographic and Health Survey 2022.
TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — A rare Bronze-Era jar accidentally smashed by a 4-year-old visiting a museum was back on display Wednesday after restoration experts were able to carefully piece the artifact back together.
Last month, a family from northern Israel was visiting the museum when their youngest son tipped over the jar, which smashed into pieces.
Alex Geller, the boy’s father, said his son — the youngest of three — is exceptionally curious, and that the moment he heard the crash, “please let that not be my child” was the first thought that raced through his head.
The jar has been on display at the Hecht Museum in Haifa for 35 years. It was one of the only containers of its size and from that period still complete when it was discovered.
The Bronze Age jar is one of many artifacts exhibited out in the open, part of the Hecht Museum’s vision of letting visitors explore history without glass barriers, said Inbal Rivlin, the director of the museum, which is associated with Haifa University in northern Israel.
It was likely used to hold wine or oil, and dates back to between 2200 and 1500 B.C.
Rivlin and the museum decided to turn the moment, which captured international attention, into a teaching moment, inviting the Geller family back for a special visit and hands-on activity to illustrate the restoration process.
Rivlin added that the incident provided a welcome distraction from the ongoing war in Gaza. “Well, he’s just a kid. So I think that somehow it touches the heart of the people in Israel and around the world,“ said Rivlin.
Roee Shafir, a restoration expert at the museum, said the repairs would be fairly simple, as the pieces were from a single, complete jar. Archaeologists often face the more daunting task of sifting through piles of shards from multiple objects and trying to piece them together.
Experts used 3D technology, hi-resolution videos, and special glue to painstakingly reconstruct the large jar.
Less than two weeks after it broke, the jar went back on display at the museum. The gluing process left small hairline cracks, and a few pieces are missing, but the jar’s impressive size remains.
The only noticeable difference in the exhibit was a new sign reading “please don’t touch.”
VICTORIA – The British Columbia government is partnering with a bear welfare group to reduce the number of bears being euthanized in the province.
Nicholas Scapillati, executive director of Grizzly Bear Foundation, said Monday that it comes after months-long discussions with the province on how to protect bears, with the goal to give the animals a “better and second chance at life in the wild.”
Scapillati said what’s exciting about the project is that the government is open to working with outside experts and the public.
“So, they’ll be working through Indigenous knowledge and scientific understanding, bringing in the latest techniques and training expertise from leading experts,” he said in an interview.
B.C. government data show conservation officers destroyed 603 black bears and 23 grizzly bears in 2023, while 154 black bears were killed by officers in the first six months of this year.
Scapillati said the group will publish a report with recommendations by next spring, while an independent oversight committee will be set up to review all bear encounters with conservation officers to provide advice to the government.
Environment Minister George Heyman said in a statement that they are looking for new ways to ensure conservation officers “have the trust of the communities they serve,” and the panel will make recommendations to enhance officer training and improve policies.
Lesley Fox, with the wildlife protection group The Fur-Bearers, said they’ve been calling for such a committee for decades.
“This move demonstrates the government is listening,” said Fox. “I suspect, because of the impending election, their listening skills are potentially a little sharper than they normally are.”
Fox said the partnership came from “a place of long frustration” as provincial conservation officers kill more than 500 black bears every year on average, and the public is “no longer tolerating this kind of approach.”
“I think that the conservation officer service and the B.C. government are aware they need to change, and certainly the public has been asking for it,” said Fox.
Fox said there’s a lot of optimism about the new partnership, but, as with any government, there will likely be a lot of red tape to get through.
“I think speed is going to be important, whether or not the committee has the ability to make change and make change relatively quickly without having to study an issue to death, ” said Fox.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 9, 2024.
