NASA canceled its water-searching “Viper” moon rover on July 17th due to cost overruns and delays.
A 2020 analysis suggests that the moon’s shadowy, cold recesses may retain more and more frozen water than previously thought. Water on the moon’s sunlit surface was verified for the first time.
Scientists think asteroids, comets, the solar wind, interplanetary dust, or lunar volcanic eruptions caused all of this moon water. Analyzing ice samples on the surface will help them identify the origins. That’s great news for future lunar colony astronauts who may consume and make rocket fuel from these resources.
Previous investigations have shown tons of ice in the moon’s permanently shadowed pole craters, but two Nature Astronomy research increase the amount of lunar surface water.
A study led by the University of Colorado’s Paul Hayne found that over 15,400 square kilometers of lunar topography may store water as ice. The region is 20% larger than estimated. Water on sunny surfaces was suspected but unconfirmed.
Astrobotic Technology was meant to provide the lander that would carry the Viper rover into orbit in late 2023, but the mission was repeatedly delayed due to further testing and rising costs, according to the space agency, endangering other programs.
The rover’s original mission was to investigate the lunar south pole. According to NASA, its development has cost almost $450 million so far.
This news breaks only days before July 20, 1969—the day of the moon landing by Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin, which occurred during the Apollo 11 mission—celebrates its 55th anniversary. NASA has said that it intends to investigate the possibility of lunar ice via several initiatives.
By the end of 2025, Astrobotic still intends to launch its Griffin lunar lander without a rover. In January, the company’s first moonshot initiative crashed in the South Pacific and failed.
