Lander finds evidence of lunar water

BEIJING: China’s Chang’e 5 lunar lander has discovered the first on-site evidence of water molecules on the moon’s surface, putting a long-running scientific debate to rest, according to a study published in the journal Science Advances.

Since the mid-20th century, scientists thought the moon was completely arid. But in 2020, Nasa confirmed via remote observation that water molecules should be widely distributed across the lunar surface, though it lacked actual on-site evidence to support its claims.

Lunar samples retrieved by Chang’e 5 revealed that the soil at the landing site, the Northern Oceanus Procellarum basin, contains less than 120 parts per million water, or 120g of water per metric tonne. — China Daily/ANN