Could the Moon be a cosmic water factory? NASA scientists might have an answer

For years, scientists have been puzzled over how water can exist on the moon, which is a place with no atmosphere, no air, and bone-dry soil. With scorching sunlight during the day and freezing temperatures at night, it seems almost impossible for water to naturally form or survive there. Yet, remote observations and moon missions have consistently shown signs of water or hydroxyl molecules across the lunar surface, especially near the poles.

Theories have floated around for decades, ranging from icy comets crashing into the moon to ancient water reserves hidden in shadowed craters. But none have completely been able to prove a fully convincing explanation. Well this time, a new NASA-led study might finally have cracked the case and it’s pointing to an unexpected source that sustains the solar system on the whole.

This also opens new doors for future human missions, especially as NASA prepares to send astronauts back to the moon through its Artemis program. Here are the details about the same.

NASA scientists have taken a big step toward solving a lunar mystery by recreating the moon’s tough, airless conditions right here on Earth. In a highly customized lab setup, researchers Li Hsia Yeo and Jason McLain from NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center built a vacuum chamber equipped with a solar particle beam and sensitive detectors. To see how the sun’s hydrogen-rich solar wind interacts with actual moon dust. It wasn’t easy getting the setup just right, took time and patience but it was essential for making sure the results were clean, accurate, and free from contamination.

For this out-of-the-box experiment, NASA scientists used the actual lunar soil collected during the Apollo 17 mission back in 1972. Before testing, the team carefully baked the samples to make sure all traces of moisture were gone. Then, using a particle accelerator, they bombarded the soil with simulated solar wind, replicating about 80,000 years of exposure in just a few days. This rapid testing gave them a window into how solar particles might shape the moon’s surface over time, showing how something as simple as sunlight and hydrogen can lead to some complex chemical changes.

On Earth, our atmosphere protects us from the solar wind. But the moon, with no such shield, takes the full hit. When high-energy hydrogen particles from the sun slam into the lunar surface, they combine with oxygen atoms found in moon minerals. This process creates hydroxyl (OH) and potentially water (H₂O). “The exciting thing here is that with only lunar soil and a basic ingredient from the sun… there's a possibility of creating water,” Yeo told NASA. It’s a natural chemistry set powered by the sun.

To see what was really happening inside the lunar dust, the NASA team used a spectrometer to track chemical changes over time. One important detail that stood out was a dip in infrared light around the 3-micron wavelength. That’s a sign that either hydroxyl (OH) or water (H₂O) is present. While they didn’t detect pure water directly, the data strongly suggested that both hydroxyl and some water molecules were forming. This lines up with past spacecraft observations, where the water signal on the moon’s surface seemed to rise and fall with the lunar day, which can be a clue that water formation may still be actively happening.

With NASA’s Artemis program preparing to return astronauts to the moon, especially the icy South Pole, these findings have just come up at a good time. If water can form naturally on the moon because of the solar wind and lunar soil, it could mean less reliance on hauling supplies from Earth. That water could be used not only for drinking, but also split into hydrogen and oxygen for fuel and breathable air. It’s a powerful discovery that could help turn the moon into a launchpad for deeper space exploration.