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NASA's Lunar CRater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) and its Centaur booster rocket are on course to crash into the moon - Source: Reuters
The American space agency Nasa says a significant amount of frozen water has been found on the moon.
In October, Nasa smashed the LCROSS spacecraft and a companion rocket into the Cabeus crater on the moon's south pole, in an attempt to find signs of water.
Scientists who have studied the data now say instruments trained on the impact plume saw copious quantities of water vapour.
"We are ecstatic," says Anthony Colaprete, LCROSS project scientist.
"The concentration and distribution of water and other substances requires further analysis, but it is safe to say Cabeus holds water."
"We're unlocking the mysteries of our nearest neighbour and, by extension, the Solar System," says Michael Wargo, chief lunar scientist at Nasa's headquarters in Washington DC.
"The Moon harbours many secrets, and LCROSS has added a new layer to our understanding."
Water has already been found on the moon but the Nasa scientists had hoped they could find significant deposits in the permanently shadowed regions of craters.
If this water is billions of years old, it could contain information about the formation of the solar system.
And if it is widespread, it could be used to sustain space travellers or broken down into fuel for space missions.
The researchers used a spectrograph to analyse the light coming from the plume of dust.
These instruments can tell what elements are found in any material by their effects on light wavelength.
The scientists say there is also other material in the dark crater.
"Along with the water in Cabeus, there are hints of other intriguing substances. The permanently shadowed regions of the moon are truly cold traps, collecting and preserving material over billions of years," Colaprete adds.
