Blair Kuykendall at The Daily Beacon reports that UT scientists discover source of lunar water. This is a big breakthrough for science and for the University of Tennessee. However, for Dr. Lawrence Taylor of UT’s Dept. of Earth and Planetary Science, this is just another step in a long career. It was after all Dr. Taylor who proved that there were abundant supplies of water on the Moon. His current discover goes to how the lunar water was deposited; it turns out that the Moon’s water comes both from cometary deposits and from internal sources.
It is certainly hoped that those who thing a near-term focus on, much less a return to, the Moon is a waste of time will reconsider. After all, with water on the Moon, the rest of the solar system is only further opened up for exploration.
Naturally enough, there are some, such as Dr. Paul Spudis, who are already thinking about how to mine the Moon’s water for use. Others, such as Mike Wall, speculate that it would be against international law to unilaterally mine lunar resources.