•The sources and chemical forms of water on the Moon are two: water carried by comets and other bodies that impact the Moon, and in situ production. The latter is theorized to be produced in small amounts by the chemical combination of hydrogen ions (protons) in the solar wind with oxygen atoms in the Moon’s minerals (oxides, silicates, etc.), forming water or its possible precursors, hydroxyl groups, trapped in a crystal lattice. Water (H2O) and the hydroxyl group (-OH), which is chemically bound to it, exist as compounds (instead of free water) in the form of hydrates and hydroxides of Moon minerals. There is strong evidence that these compounds are present in large parts of the Moon’s surface at low concentrations. In fact, the presence of adsorbed water has been calculated to be in the range of 10 parts per million to 1,000 parts per million. This mineral-bound water, or hydroxylated mineral surface, should not be confused with water ice.
Inconclusive evidence of the presence of fresh water ice on the Moon has been found in various models that postulate the existence of bound hydrogen. Moon scientists have debated the possibility of water deposits for decades. Now, they write in a report that they are “confident that the decades-long debate is over.” “There is water on the Moon, everywhere, not just in minerals, but in fragmented form on the surface and probably in the form of ice blocks or slabs deep underground.”
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