The Indian probe Chandrayaan-1, while examining the surface of the Moon in 2008 and 2009, collected data that led to numerous discoveries over the years. One of them is that there are water molecules on the surface of our natural satellite.
When scientists from NASA and the University of Hawaii recently analyzed the information, they discovered that there were traces of hematite, or iron (III) oxide, on the surface of the moon. This chemical is the main component of rust. Oddly enough, rust is formed when iron is exposed to oxygen and water, and the former is not on the moon. Additionally, hydrogen is constantly sent to its surface, carried by the solar wind, which hinders the rusting process.
“It’s very puzzling”
– At first, I didn’t believe it at all. This should not happen, given the conditions on the moon, said Abigail Fraeman of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, one of NASA’s research centers. “It’s very puzzling,” said the lead author of the study, Shuai Li of the University of Hawaii.
However, scientists believe they have solved this mystery. The answer is on our planet.
The rust was concentrated on the side of the Moon facing the Earth. This one is surrounded by a magnetic field, and the solar wind stretches this field, creating a so-called magnetic tail. The Silver Globe goes into the tail’s reach every month, three days before its full moon. It takes a total of six days before it is beyond its reach. According to the researchers, oxygen from the Earth’s upper atmosphere as it travels in the magnetic tail lands on the Moon and interacts with water molecules. This is how the moon is supposed to rust.
In the composition below, areas on the moon with accumulated water are marked in blue. Traces of hematite were found there.
More research needed
However, the question remains as to why the rust traces appeared on the far side of the moon, where oxygen from our planet cannot reach. More data is also needed to understand exactly how water molecules interact with rocks. For these purposes, NASA plans to create a new version of the tool that – built into the Chandrayaan-1 probe – will study the mineral composition of our natural satellite.
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