Researchers say glass beads on the moon hold water

March 28 (UPI) -- Scientists at the Institute of Geology and Geophysics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences discovered what may be a new water reservoir on the moon.

The group of researchers, led by Prof. HU Sen found that analyzed lunar samples that were recovered during the Chinese Chang'e-5 lunar mission in 2020 and found that lunar soils found in the impact glass collected by the spacecraft contain water.

"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 HU.

The research, published in the journal Nature, suggests that so-called impact glass beads, which are created when a meteorite impacts the surface of the moon, can hold large amounts of water across the surface.

"It has been proposed that a hydrated layer exists at depth in lunar soils, buffering a water cycle on the moon globally. However, a reservoir has yet to be identified for this hydrated layer," the paper states.

Recent research suggests that solar wind irradiates the surface of asteroids causing them to eject oxygen which can combine with hydrogen ions from solar wind to create water. The byproduct of this process is called "solar wind-derived water."

"The impact glass beads persevere hydration signatures and display water abundance profiles consistent with the inward diffusion of solar wind-derived water. Diffusion modeling estimates diffusion timescales of less than 15 years at a temperature of 360 K," the researchers said.

"Such short diffusion timescales suggest an efficient water recharge mechanism that could sustain the lunar surface water cycle," the researchers continued. "Impact glass beads can store substantial quantitates of solar wind-derived water on the moon and suggest that impact glass may be water reservoirs on other airless bodies."