Scientists Just Unlocked a Fuel Source on the Moon, And It’s Massive!
The Daily Galaxy••science
Key Points:
- Scientists and engineers are developing methods to convert frozen water on the Moon's south pole into rocket fuel, supporting permanent lunar bases and enabling missions to Mars and beyond without relying solely on Earth launches.
- The Moon's south pole contains ancient ice trapped in permanently shadowed craters, but this water exists mostly as tiny ice particles within the lunar soil, requiring heating and vapor capture techniques to extract.
- Electrolysis, the process of splitting water into hydrogen and oxygen, can produce rocket fuel on the Moon; NASA’s MOXIE experiment on Mars has demonstrated similar technology, which now needs adaptation for lunar conditions.
- Producing fuel on the Moon could drastically reduce space mission costs, with NASA estimating up to $12 billion savings for a
