Ice on moon’s surface: Computer simulations reveal that moon may have contained a lot of water – check details

The Moon, considered as earth’s only natural satellite, wasn’t geologically dead in the past, as is considered today. According to new research, many volcanic eruptions took place on the surface of the moon billions of years ago. However, the years of cooling down has resulted in the creation of dark blotches or maria, showing what it is now.

A new research by the University of Colorado Boulder has suggested that volcanoes may have left sheets of ice on the lunar surface which are hundreds of metres thick. Published in the The Planetary Science Journal, the research has been published under the title “Polar Ice Accumulation from Volcanically Induced Transient Atmospheres on the Moon.”

The study suggested that researchers used computer simulations with an aim to recreate the conditions on the moon that were long before life existed on the earth. During their study, researchers found volcanoes on the moon spread huge amounts of water vapour that settled on the surface of the earth’s natural satellite. This eventually resulted in the formation of stores of ice.

This study went on to suggest that if humans were alive at the time, they would have witnessed frost near the moon’s surface between day and night. Researchers believe that the study shows the moon might have a lot more water than was believed earlier. A study in 2020 revealed that close to 15,000 square kilometres of the moon’s surface has the potential to store ice.

Volcanoes might have been a major source of water on the moon over 2 to 4 billion years ago. Nearly thousands of volcanoes might have erupted, resulting in rivers and lakes of lava. These volcanoes might have resulted in the formation of major clouds made up of carbon monoxide and water vapour. These clouds then eventually might have formed a thin and momentary atmosphere.