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Title: Scientists Detect Earth-Equivalent Amount of Water Within the Moon
Source:
Science Daily
URL Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110526141400.htm
Published: May 28, 2011
Author: not attributed
Post Date: 2011-05-28 00:13:50 by farmfriend
Keywords: None
Views: 251
Comments: 20
ScienceDaily (May 26, 2011) — There is water inside the moon -- so much, in fact, that in some places it rivals the amount of water found within Earth. The finding from a scientific team including Brown University comes from the first-ever measurements of water in lunar melt inclusions. Those measurements show that some parts of the lunar mantle have as much water as Earth's upper mantle. Lunar melt inclusions are tiny globules of molten rock trapped within crystals that are found in volcanic glass deposits formed during explosive eruptions. The new finding, published this week in Science Express, shows lunar magma water contents 100 times higher than previous studies have suggested. The result is the culmination of years of investigation by the team searching for water and other volatiles in volcanic glasses returned by NASA Apollo missions in the late 1960s and early 1970s. In a paper in Nature in 2008, the same team led by Alberto Saal, associate professor of geological sciences at Brown, reported the first evidence for the presence of water and used models to estimate how much water was originally in the magmas before eruption. "The bottom line," said Saal, an author on the Science Express paper and the principal investigator on the research grants, "is that in 2008, we said the primitive water content in the lunar magmas should be similar to the water content in lavas coming from the Earth's depleted upper mantle. Now, we have proven that is indeed the case." The new finding got a critical assist from a Brown undergraduate student, Thomas Weinreich, who found the melt inclusions that allowed the team to measure the pre-eruption concentration of water in the magma and to estimate the amount of water in the Moon's interior. In a classic needle-in-the-haystack effort, Weinreich searched through thousands of grains from the famous high-titanium "orange soil" discovered by astronaut Harrison Schmitt during the Apollo 17 mission before finding ten that included melt inclusions. "It just looks like a clear sample with some black specks in it," said Weinreich, the second author on the paper. Compared with meteorites, Earth and the other inner planets of our solar system contain relatively low amounts of water and volatile elements, which were not abundant in the inner solar system during planet formation. The even lower quantities of these volatile elements found on the Moon has long been claimed as evidence that it must have formed following a high-temperature, catastrophic giant impact. But this new research shows that aspects of this theory must be reevaluated. "Water plays a critical role in determining the tectonic behavior of planetary surfaces, the melting point of planetary interiors and the location and eruptive style of planetary volcanoes," said Erik Hauri, a geochemist with the Carnegie Institution of Washington and lead author of the study. "We can conceive of no sample type that would be more important to return to Earth than these volcanic glass samples ejected by explosive volcanism, which have been mapped not only on the moon but throughout the inner solar system." The research team measured the water content in the inclusions using a state-of-the-art NanoSIMS 50L ion microprobe. "In contrast to most volcanic deposits, the melt inclusions are encased in crystals that prevent the escape of water and other volatiles during eruption. These samples provide the best window we have on the amount of water in the interior of the Moon," said James Van Orman of Case Western Reserve University, a member of the science team. The study also puts a new twist on the origin of water ice detected in craters at the lunar poles by several recent NASA missions. The ice has been attributed to comet and meteor impacts, but it is possible some of this ice could have come from the water released by eruption of lunar magmas. Malcolm Rutherford, professor emeritus in geological sciences at Brown, also contributed to the paper. The NASA LASER and Cosmochemistry programs funded the research, with additional support provided by the NASA Lunar Science Institute (NLSI) and the NASA Astrobiology Institute.
Scientists Detect Earth-Equivalent Amount of Water Within the Moon
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#1. To: farmfriend (#0)
I'm sure the Chinese will appreciate our discovery when they colonize the moon.
LOL that's about the size of it.
I think Congressmen should wear uniforms like NASCAR drivers so we could identify their corporate sponsors.
So they will be there next month right? LOL! They claim they taped over the moon tapes and never copied them. They may go to the moon soon, but a human isn't going anytime soon.
God is always good!
Interesting! But, I wonder how they could get any of it back here. ;)
"When bad men combine, the good must associate; else they will fall, one by one." Edmund Burke
BAH! First and foremost, what does it matter? Are these same "scientists" willing to fly to the moon for a bucket of "purified moon juice" and bring it back at their own expense? And, more importantly, even if their "findings" were close to correct (which I doubt), go ahead and drill the water and release it on the moon's surface for planting and irrigation of crops and human consumption. HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
"In a free society we're supposed to know the truth," ... "In a society where truth becomes treason, then we're in big trouble. And now, people who are revealing the truth are getting into trouble for it" -- Ron Paul, circa 2010-12-02
I think the discovery is more about understanding the origins of the moon than it has to do with harvesting any water from its interior.
I think it is about MONEY. NASA wants its major funding back so they can have the coke parities they have enjoyed for decades back again. Making people believe that the moon possibly could support a moon base/colony is a step in the right direction to getting the dollars back and the coke parties started again.
God is always good!
It was one of the major issues with forming a base on the moon. They needed a source of water.
I think Congressmen should wear uniforms like NASCAR drivers so we could identify their corporate sponsors.
Oh! A pure scientific understanding about the Universe based on government funding because of your willing federal contributions every April 15th? To add to our understanding of and about water vapor or in molecular form in the center of the moon, 'eh? Perhaps, some two billion year old ice chunk found in a crater? How many more tax dollars are ya willing to throw away for these charlatans that can't even handle the demise of America while a thousand times the amount is thrown towards war around the planet? You must be patient on this Memorial Day weekend .... 0bama is preparing a speech, ya know.
"In a free society we're supposed to know the truth," ... "In a society where truth becomes treason, then we're in big trouble. And now, people who are revealing the truth are getting into trouble for it" -- Ron Paul, circa 2010-12-02
OK. I agree, too. Yet, what is the COST to taxpayers for the water filtration system and same water extraction system? Eh? One BILLION or ten TRILLION? And for what? A cup of water?
"In a free society we're supposed to know the truth," ... "In a society where truth becomes treason, then we're in big trouble. And now, people who are revealing the truth are getting into trouble for it" -- Ron Paul, circa 2010-12-02
There's are a LOT of things that we use in everyday life, such as a PC for example, that are a direct result of pure scientific research. I'd rather see money spent for constructive use rather than see it spent on the killing and suffering of people who posed no threat to us. In fact, if we WERE to pull our troops out of places they don't belong, and instead invest a fraction of that on interplanetary and even interstellar space travel, there'd be MANY jobs created that would fuel the economy just like it did when the Apollo missions were going fullswing.
I see your point. Take for example, the silicon transistor to enable smaller and more reliable killing machines for command, control, communications (C3) endorsed by the US Defense Department. The silicon transistor was based on US government contracts to some of the largest government contractors in America many years ago. You still don't understand subterfuge. You don't understand anything in contemporary politics. US troops belong on the US border guarding and defending America, not AROUND the FUCKING WORLD where they may or not belong based on your opinion.
"In a free society we're supposed to know the truth," ... "In a society where truth becomes treason, then we're in big trouble. And now, people who are revealing the truth are getting into trouble for it" -- Ron Paul, circa 2010-12-02
I think the space program has returns that can't be measured. I'm sure there are those who disagree. We do need to look at how our fiat dollars are spent. I think federal employment is way too high.
I think Congressmen should wear uniforms like NASCAR drivers so we could identify their corporate sponsors.
Better that than studies on why monkeys grin and yes that was a real study.
I think Congressmen should wear uniforms like NASCAR drivers so we could identify their corporate sponsors.
We throw away a trillion a year on our foreign adventures. I'm sure that money could be put to better use, and space research is one of those better uses. Of course we don't need to spend a trillion a year on research, but SOME of that money would go a long way in driving forward not just the economy, but our understanding of the universe.
I would much rather see public money go towards projects like this than a bridge to nowhere.
I think Congressmen should wear uniforms like NASCAR drivers so we could identify their corporate sponsors.
Their rockets will work no better than Nigerian ones. Whites create, Asians copy, blacks sing and dance.
“I do not love the bright sword for its sharpness, nor the arrow for its swiftness, nor the warrior for his glory. I love only that which they defend” - J.R.R. Tolkien
you are forgetting clinton gave them all our rocket tech.
I think Congressmen should wear uniforms like NASCAR drivers so we could identify their corporate sponsors.
American exceptionalism on display. Chinese are not dumb people. They can do anything any other race can do. Some of the best mathematicians and scientists in the world right now are Chinese. Sure they have a shitty dictatorial government, but we are starting to get the same here as well.
God is always good!
Are you aware of the fact that they have successfully launched their own GPS and communication satellites, have successfully tested long range missles, and have every bit of knowledge concerning sophisticated navigation and rocket propulsion that this country does? What they didn't steal, they were handed on a silver platter by globalists within our own government. Not only that, but they have purchased Russian military technology in the form of anti-ship missiles which are designed to defeat US aircraft carrier defense systems and sink them, and have expanded that technology to produce air launched, sea-launched, and ground launched versions.
Once you go armadillo, you never go back.
#2. To: Armadillo (#1)
#3. To: farmfriend (#0)
#4. To: farmfriend (#0)
Lunar melt inclusions are tiny globules of molten rock trapped within crystals that are found in volcanic glass deposits formed during explosive eruptions. The new finding, published this week in Science Express, shows lunar magma water contents 100 times higher than previous studies have suggested.
#5. To: farmfriend (#0)
#6. To: buckeroo, farmfriend (#5)
"The real deal is this: the ‘royalty’ controlling the court, the ones with the power, the ones with the ability to make a difference, with the ability to change our course, the ones who will live in infamy if we pass the tipping points, are the captains of industry, CEOs in fossil fuel companies such as EXXON/Mobil, automobile manufacturers, utilities, all of the leaders who have placed short-term profit above the fate of the planet and the well-being of our children." - James Hansen
#7. To: FormerLurker (#6)
I think the discovery is more about understanding the origins of the moon than it has to do with harvesting any water from its interior.
#8. To: buckeroo (#5)
First and foremost, what does it matter?
#9. To: FormerLurker (#6)
I think the discovery is more about understanding the origins of the moon than it has to do with harvesting any water from its interior.
#10. To: farmfriend (#8)
It was one of the major issues with forming a base on the moon. They needed a source of water.
#11. To: buckeroo (#9)
"The real deal is this: the ‘royalty’ controlling the court, the ones with the power, the ones with the ability to make a difference, with the ability to change our course, the ones who will live in infamy if we pass the tipping points, are the captains of industry, CEOs in fossil fuel companies such as EXXON/Mobil, automobile manufacturers, utilities, all of the leaders who have placed short-term profit above the fate of the planet and the well-being of our children." - James Hansen
#12. To: FormerLurker (#11)
There's are a LOT of things that we use in everyday life, such as a PC for example, that are a direct result of pure scientific research.
I'd rather see money spent for constructive use rather than see it spent on the killing and suffering of people who posed no threat to us.
In fact, if we WERE to pull our troops out of places they don't belong, and instead invest a fraction of that on interplanetary and even interstellar space travel, there'd be MANY jobs created that would fuel the economy just like it did when the Apollo missions were going fullswing.
#13. To: buckeroo (#10)
Yet, what is the COST to taxpayers for the water filtration system and same water extraction system? Eh? One BILLION or ten TRILLION? And for what? A cup of water?
#14. To: FormerLurker, buckeroo (#11)
There's are a LOT of things that we use in everyday life, such as a PC for example, that are a direct result of pure scientific research.
#15. To: farmfriend (#14)
"The real deal is this: the ‘royalty’ controlling the court, the ones with the power, the ones with the ability to make a difference, with the ability to change our course, the ones who will live in infamy if we pass the tipping points, are the captains of industry, CEOs in fossil fuel companies such as EXXON/Mobil, automobile manufacturers, utilities, all of the leaders who have placed short-term profit above the fate of the planet and the well-being of our children." - James Hansen
#16. To: FormerLurker (#15)
Of course we don't need to spend a trillion a year on research, but SOME of that money would go a long way in driving forward not just the economy, but our understanding of the universe.
#17. To: Armadillo (#1)
I'm sure the Chinese will appreciate our discovery when they colonize the moon.
#18. To: Turtle, Armadillo (#17)
Their rockets will work no better than Nigerian ones.
#19. To: Turtle (#17)
Their rockets will work no better than Nigerian ones.
#20. To: Turtle (#17)
(Edited)
Their rockets will work no better than Nigerian ones.
"The real deal is this: the ‘royalty’ controlling the court, the ones with the power, the ones with the ability to make a difference, with the ability to change our course, the ones who will live in infamy if we pass the tipping points, are the captains of industry, CEOs in fossil fuel companies such as EXXON/Mobil, automobile manufacturers, utilities, all of the leaders who have placed short-term profit above the fate of the planet and the well-being of our children." - James Hansen
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