Lunar soil

China has launched a lunar probe on May 3 that will land on the far side of the moon and return with samples that could provide insights into geological and other differences between the less-explored region and the better-known near side.

AFP - Scientists say they have confirmed the existence of ice on the Moon's surface for the first time, a discovery that could one day help humans survive there.

Signs of ice on the Moon have been reported by scientists for years, but previous observations could have been explained by other phenomena, such as unusually reflective lunar soil, the study authors said Tuesday.

The Moon, long thought to be a dry, inhospitable orb, hosts surprisingly large sub-surface water reserves, which one day may quench the thirst of lunar explorers from Earth, scientists said on July 24.

"We found the signature of the lunar interior water globally using satellite data," Shuai Li, co-author of a study by scientists at Brown University in the United States, said.