A radar experiment aboard India's Chandrayaan-1 lunar spacecraft has identified thick deposits of water-ice near the Moon's north pole.
The NASA backed Mini-Sar experiment aboard the Chandrayaan found upto 40 craters containing water ice in the moon’s North Pole. Yet another experiment, LCROSS found traces of hydrocarbons mixed in the lunar ice. It is believed that there must be atleast 600 million metric tonnes of water ice within the craters. The water ice remains stable because the interiors of most of these craters are permanently darkened and remain well below freezing point at all times.
Dr. Paul Spudis of the Lunar and Planetary Institute who presented the findings observed, “now we can say with a fair degree of confidence that a sustainable human presence on the Moon is possible. It’s possible using the resources we find there.”
“The results from these missions, that we have seen in the last few months are totally revolutionizing our view of the Moon.” He concluded.