Blast bid to find water on dark side of the Moon
SCIENTISTS hope to make a splash by "bombing" the Moon with two spacecraft today.
The plan is to slam the projectiles into a dark crater at the lunar south pole, kicking up a six-mile high dust cloud that may contain water.
British researchers helped Nasa select the location for the project, which will be broadcast live on Nasa's website.
The Cabeus south polar region was identified by the University of Durham team as a site with high concentrations of hydrogen, an indicator that water might be present.
Dr Vincent Eke, from the Institute for Computational Cosmology at the University of Durham, said: "
If ice is present in the permanently shaded lunar craters of the Moon then it could potentially provide a water source for the eventual establishment of a manned base on the Moon."
He added the moon might then be used to explore the rest of the Solar System.
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Monday 28 May 2012
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