PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Researchers find new water reservoir on Moon

Researchers find new water reservoir on Moon
2023-03-27
(Press-News.org)

Lunar surface water has attracted much attention due to its potential for in-situ resource utilization by future lunar exploration missions and other space missions

Now, a research group led by Prof. HU Sen from the Institute of Geology and Geophysics (IGG) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) has found that impact glass beads in Chang'e-5 (CE5) lunar soils contain some water.

Detailed studies show that these glass beads are likely a new water reservoir on the Moon, recording the dynamic ingress and egress of solar wind-derived water and acting as a buffer for the lunar surface water cycle.

This work was published in Nature Geoscience on March 27.

Many lunar missions have confirmed the presence of structural water or water ice on the Moon. There is little doubt that most of the Moon's surface harbors water, though the amount is much less than on Earth.

Surface water on the Moon displays diurnal cycles and loss to space, indicating that there should be a hydrated layer or reservoir at depth in lunar soils to sustain the retention, release, and replenishment of water on the surface of the Moon. However, previous studies of water inventory of fine mineral grains in lunar soils, impact-produced agglutinates, volcanic rocks, and pyroclastic glass beads have been unable to explain the retention, release, and replenishment of water on the surface of the Moon (i.e., the lunar surface water cycle). Therefore, there must be a yet-unidentified water reservoir in lunar soils that has the capacity to buffer the lunar surface water cycle.

Doctoral student HE Huicun, under the guidance of Prof. HU Sen, proposed that impact glass beads, a ubiquitous component in lunar soils with an amorphous nature, were a potential candidate for investigation of the unidentified hydrated layer or reservoir in lunar soils.

She systematically characterized the petrography, major element composition, water abundance, and hydrogen isotope composition of the impact glass beads returned by the CE5 mission, aiming to identify and characterize the missing water reservoir on the Moon's surface.

The CE5 impact glass beads have homogeneous chemical compositions and smooth exposed surfaces. They are characterized by water abundance up to about 2,000 μg.g-1, with extreme deuterium-depleted characteristics. The negative correlation between water abundance and hydrogen isotope composition reflects the fact that water in the CE5 impact glass beads comes from solar winds.

The researchers also analyzed water abundance along six transects in five glass beads, which showed the hydration profiles of solar wind-derived water. Some glass beads were overlapped by a later degassing event. The impact glass beads acted as a sponge for buffering the lunar surface water cycle. The researchers estimate that the amount of water contributed by impact glass beads to lunar soils varies from 3.0 × 1011 kg to 2.7 × 1014 kg.

"These findings indicate that the impact glasses on the surface of the Moon and other airless bodies in the solar system are capable of storing solar wind-derived water and releasing it into space," said Prof HU.

The study was a collaboration with Nanjing University, The Open University, The Natural History Museum, The University of Manchester, and the University of Science and Technology of China.

END


[Attachments] See images for this press release:
Researchers find new water reservoir on Moon

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Ending THC use may reverse its impacts on male fertility

2023-03-27
A 2022 study from Oregon Health & Science University researchers confirmed that chronic use of cannabis may greatly impact male fertility and reproductive outcomes in nonhuman primates — but it was unclear whether the effects are permanent. Now, the OHSU research team has confirmed that discontinuing use of THC can at least partly reverse these effects, according to a new study published online today in Fertility & Sterility. This is one of the first studies demonstrating that discontinuation ...

New study: HIV genomes that hide in white blood cells offer new target to eliminate infections

2023-03-27
**EMBARGOED TILL 11 A.M. ET MONDAY, MARCH 27 To develop treatments that may one day entirely rid the body of HIV infection, scientists have long sought to identify all of the places that the virus can hide its genetic code. Now, in a study using blood samples from men and women with HIV on long-term suppressive therapy, a team led by Johns Hopkins Medicine scientists reports new evidence that one such stable reservoir of HIV genomes can be found in circulating white blood cells called monocytes. Monocytes are short-lived circulating immune cells that are a precursor to macrophages, immune cells able to engulf and destroy viruses, bacteria ...

The search for the missing gravitational signal

The search for the missing gravitational signal
2023-03-27
Every year, hundreds of thousands of pairs of black holes merge in a cosmic dance that emits gravitational waves in every direction. Since 2015, the large ground-based LIGO, Virgo and KAGRA interferometers have made it possible to detect these signals, although only about a hundred such events, an infinitesimal fraction of the total, have been observed. Most of the waves remain 'indistinguishable', superimposed and added together, creating a flat, diffuse background signal that scientists call the 'stochastic gravitational wave ...

Study of dietary and nutrition recommendations from worldwide clinical practice guidelines finds close alignment on benefits of plant food groups for treatment and prevention of chronic disease

2023-03-27
The results of a study published in “Advances in Nutrition” that compared dietary and nutrition recommendations from dozens of clinical practice guidelines around the world for treating, managing and preventing major chronic diseases should increase clinician confidence on recommending consumption of fruits, vegetables, legumes and whole grains. The meta-epidemiological study from the American College of Lifestyle Medicine (ACLM) reviewed 78 clinical practice guidelines published between 2010 and 2021 in North America, Europe and Asia and found close alignment in their recommendations for encouraging daily intake of plant food sources, while ...

Don Quixote gives his name to a new plant species only known from La Mancha, Spain

Don Quixote gives his name to a new plant species only known from La Mancha, Spain
2023-03-27
The knowledge of biodiversity in allegedly well-known places is not as complete as one would expect and its detailed study by researchers continues to offer surprises, is what we find out in a new study of the flora of south-central Spain.  Now, Spanish botanists from Pablo de Olavide University (Seville, Spain) have described a new plant species of the papyrus family (Cyperaceae) restricted to the La Mancha region in south-central Spain. This region is in fact well-known for classic literary fans, who might recognise the name ...

SwRI-developed instrument delivered for lunar lander mission

SwRI-developed instrument delivered for lunar lander mission
2023-03-27
SAN ANTONIO — March 27, 2023 —Southwest Research Institute recently delivered the Lunar Magnetotelluric Sounder (LMS) to Firefly Aerospace in Cedar Park, Texas, for integration into the Blue Ghost 1 lunar lander scheduled to arrive at the Moon in 2024. The sounder will determine the electrical conductivity of the interior of the Moon by measuring low-frequency electric and magnetic fields. “For more than 50 years, scientists have used magnetotelluric techniques, which use natural characteristics of the Earth’s electromagnetic fields to determine the electrical resistivity of the subsurface for research and resource exploration,” said SwRI’s Bob Grimm, ...

Socially vulnerable carry disproportionate COVID burden due to lower likelihood of vaccination not vaccine effectiveness

2023-03-27
INDIANAPOLIS – The burden of the pandemic has disproportionately affected socially vulnerable populations. One of the first studies to look at the intersection of social vulnerability with COVID-19 vaccine utilization and effectiveness has found that while vaccination rates have varied substantially between socially vulnerable and communities that are not socially vulnerable, there has been no difference in vaccine effectiveness between those who are socially vulnerable and those who are not. “We found that protection against emergency room and urgent care center visits, hospitalization and death conveyed by a COVID-19 mRNA vaccination ...

Positive experiences in close relationships are associated with better physical health, new research suggests

2023-03-27
Social relationships influence physical health, but questions remain about the nature of this connection. New research in Social Psychological and Personality Science suggests that the way you feel about your close relationships may be affecting the way your body functions. Previous smaller-scale studies have examined the connection between relationship conflict or satisfaction with stress levels and blood pressure. The new research examines the effects of positive and negative relationship experiences on the body, as well as how these experiences and health outcomes change ...

Research may speed identification of patients who need liver transplants

2023-03-27
Research findings from Rutgers, the University of Michigan, the University of Texas Southwestern, and the Medical University of South Carolina could save lives by enabling faster and more accurate identification of hospitalized patients who need liver transplants or are likely to recover. Retrospective analysis of blood samples and medical records from 270 patients admitted to the hospital with acute liver failure (ALF) found that concentrations of a short-lived but abundant serum protein called carbamoyl phosphate synthetase 1 (CPS1) helped predict which patients survive or die without a transplant. “We still need to validate these results in more patients to ...

Finger-prick test developed for ‘trich’ a common, undiagnosed STI

Finger-prick test developed for ‘trich’ a common, undiagnosed STI
2023-03-27
PULLMAN, Wash. – A quick, affordable diagnostic test developed by a Washington State University researcher may help curb one of the most prevalent but least discussed sexually transmitted infections. More common than chlamydia or gonorrhea, Trichomonas vaginalis, also known as trich, causes no symptoms in about 70% of those infected. Even when asymptomatic, trich is linked to a host of bad health outcomes, including increased susceptibility to HIV, prostate cancer in men and infertility and pregnancy complications in women. Trich is easily ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Inability to pay for healthcare reaches record high in U.S.

Science ‘storytelling’ urgently needed amid climate and biodiversity crisis

KAIST Develops Retinal Therapy to Restore Lost Vision​

Adipocyte-hepatocyte signaling mechanism uncovered in endoplasmic reticulum stress response

Mammals were adapting from life in the trees to living on the ground before dinosaur-killing asteroid

Low LDL cholesterol levels linked to reduced risk of dementia

Thickening of the eye’s retina associated with greater risk and severity of postoperative delirium in older patients

Almost one in ten people surveyed report having been harmed by the NHS in the last three years

Enhancing light control with complex frequency excitations

New research finds novel drug target for acute myeloid leukemia, bringing hope for cancer patients

New insight into factors associated with a common disease among dogs and humans

Illuminating single atoms for sustainable propylene production

New study finds Rocky Mountain snow contamination

Study examines lactation in critically ill patients

UVA Engineering Dean Jennifer West earns AIMBE’s 2025 Pierre Galletti Award

Doubling down on metasurfaces

New Cedars-Sinai study shows how specialized diet can improve gut disorders

Making moves and hitting the breaks: Owl journeys surprise researchers in western Montana

PKU Scientists simulate the origin and evolution of the North Atlantic Oscillation

ICRAFT breakthrough: Unlocking A20’s dual role in cancer immunotherapy

How VR technology is changing the game for Alzheimer’s disease

A borrowed bacterial gene allowed some marine diatoms to live on a seaweed diet

Balance between two competing nerve proteins deters symptoms of autism in mice

Use of antifungals in agriculture may increase resistance in an infectious yeast

Awareness grows of cancer risk from alcohol consumption, survey finds

The experts that can outsmart optical illusions

Pregnancy may reduce long COVID risk

Scientists uncover novel immune mechanism in wheat tandem kinase

Three University of Virginia Engineering faculty elected as AAAS Fellows

Unintentional drug overdoses take a toll across the U.S. unequally, study finds

[Press-News.org] Researchers find new water reservoir on Moon