Scientists discovered hydrogen in lunar rock samples sent by the Apollo mission. This suggests that in the future, astronauts could use lunar water for life support and rocket fuel.

Scientists at the US Naval National Laboratory (NRL) announced that they detected hydrogen in the lunar soil sample number 79221, after analyzing the lunar samples provided by NASA for research. It is thought that the detected hydrogen emerged as a result of the constantly falling rain of celestial bodies. Brought by solar wind or comets.

Hydrogen could become a resource that could be used to provide permanent scientific foundations on the lunar surface. Identifying resources and understanding how to extract them before the Moon is explored is of great value,” said the study’s lead author, Catherine Burgess, a geologist at the U.S. Navy National Laboratory.

According to NASA estimates, sending a bottle of water to the moon would cost several thousand dollars. Therefore, to reduce costs, it is possible to break down the ice on the moon into its components (hydrogen and oxygen) to be used as water for astronauts and as rocket fuel for flights between the moon and Earth. Maybe in the future this method can also be used to send astronauts to Mars.

Data obtained in 2020 from the infrared flying telescope SOFIA (Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy) showed that water on the Moon may be in the form of ice across its entire surface and is not limited to permanently shadowed regions near the Moon’s north and south poles. .

It is noteworthy that the astronauts on the Apollo mission collected moon rocks at the equator, not near the south pole of the Moon, where many countries plan to establish a long-term base.

India’s Chandrayaan-3 mission, which sent a roving robotic lander to the Moon’s south polar region, discovered another valuable element, sulfur, on the lunar surface, even in larger quantities than previously thought. It could also be used to make batteries in the future.