NASA Engineer Says Its Heterodyne Spectrometer May Discover Moon Water

Goddard technology may help in the hunt for water on the Moon by harnessing quantum tunneling to create a powerful terahertz laser, and Dr. Berhanu Bulcha of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, suggests using a heterodyne spectrometer.

Goddard's Terahertz Laser May Assist in Detect Moon Water

Goddard technology might simplify locating water on the Moon by using the quantum tunneling phenomenon to produce an intense terahertz laser, which would close a current laser technology gap.

In order to examine Earth's natural satellite and other solar system objects, NASA prioritizes finding water and other resources. Previous research indicated and shown that the Moon has water. However, broadband detectors can't distinguish between water, free hydrogen ions, and hydroxyl.

It has been suggested by Goddard engineer Dr. Berhanu Bulcha that a heterodyne spectrometer may be used to discover water sources on the Moon. NASA's Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) initiative created a prototype of a stable, powerful terahertz laser in conjunction with Longwave Photonics.

Spectrometers look at the light's spectra or wavelengths to determine a substance's chemical composition. Most spectrometers have comprehensive spectral coverage, while heterodyne devices use terahertz or infrared light. Hydrogen-containing molecules release photons at a rate of 2 trillion to 10 trillion cycles per second between microwave and infrared.

Heterodyne spectrometers combine a laser source close by with an incoming light source to detect minute terahertz shifts. By seeing the difference between the laser source and the total wavelength, precise sub-bandwidth measurements may be made.

According to Dr. Bulcha, no materials can produce a terahertz pulse with current laser technology. His team is developing quantum cascade lasers to close the gap by employing quantum-scale physics to generate photons from each electron transfer.

Artemis 1 Will Launch SLS Rocket Which NASA Expects to Allow Lunar Flights Again Soon

NASA anticipates that the launch of Artemis 1 on August 29 will enable manned lunar missions within a few years. At Florida's Kennedy Space Center, the Artemis 1 will conduct tests on the brand-new Space Launch System (SLS) rocket, the Orion spacecraft, and the supporting ground system.

Artemis 1 will be traveling to the moon, which is a chance that shouldn't be passed up, carrying ten additional payloads. The Lunar IceCube and Lunar Polar Hydrogen Mapper (LunaH-Map) CubeSats are two of them, and their purpose is to search for water on the moon. Since would-be explorers want to get breathing oxygen and rocket fuel from the ice, locating water is crucial for long-duration missions when humanity return to the moon and even beyond.

Kentucky's Morehead State University is working on Lunar IceCube. NASA's 14-kilogram (31-pound) Broadband Infrared Compact High-Resolution Exploration Spectrometer (BIRCHES), a sensor, will be mounted to the CubeSat. The presence of water will also be recorded in the exosphere, a thin layer of gas that surrounds the moon and acts as a soft copy of Earth's atmosphere.

Additionally, the mission will test a novel ion propulsion engine that, in the words of NASA, "operates electrically using small amounts of propellant to give a small push and drive the spacecraft along its path, similar to that of butterfly wings."

The Lunar Polar Hydrogen Mapper (LunaH-Map) will look for water ice near the moon's south pole. Arizona State University (ASU) is building a 13.6 kg (30 lb) CubeSat.

LunaH-Map will map near-surface hydrogen deposits inside the top 3 feet (1 meter) of the moon, including shadowed regions. NASA says scientists will construct the most detailed map of water ice near the south pole.

Future moon and beyond missions will benefit from all the data collected by Artemis 1's auxiliary payloads. NASA wants Artemis 1 to launch an extensive lunar exploration mission to establish a long-lasting presence on the moon.