What Has Been Achieved So Far?
Recent headlines and viral images have claimed that China has already extracted over 50 kilograms of water from the Moon’s soil.
While China has indeed made remarkable progress in lunar research, the reality is more nuanced.
In August 2024, scientists from the Chinese Academy of Sciences announced a laboratory success: using lunar soil samples brought back by the Chang’e-5 mission, they demonstrated a method to release hydrogen and oxygen trapped in minerals, producing measurable amounts of water.
The process, which involves heating the soil to extremely high temperatures, could one day provide a vital water source for astronauts.
However, no large-scale extraction has yet been carried out on the Moon itself.
The breakthrough remains a proof-of-concept, tested only on Earth using returned samples.
Future missions, such as the planned Chang’e-7 to the lunar south pole, aim to test these methods in situ.
The research is an important step toward sustainable lunar exploration but claims of mass water harvesting on the Moon are, for now, premature.
1. Discovery of Water in Lunar Samples
- In July 2024, scientists analyzing lunar soil from the Chang’e-5 mission (which returned in December 2020) identified a hydrated mineral—dubbed ULM-1—that contains molecular water.
- .This marks the first confirmed presence of water in returned lunar samples South China Morning PostThe Indian Expresswww.ndtv.com.
- They also found water trapped within impact glass beads, indicating a hidden reservoir of water deposited by solar wind interactions over time ABP LiveReddit+1Space.
2. Innovative Extraction Method from Lunar Soil
- In August 2024, researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences devised a method to generate water by heating lunar soil.
- The process chemically reacts hydrogen (embedded in minerals like ilmenite due to solar wind exposure) with oxygen at extremely high temperatures to produce water vapor, along with iron and ceramic glass South China Morning Post+1www.ndtv.comChinese Academy of Sciences.
- Their experiments show that 1 gram of lunar soil could yield 51–76 mg of water, meaning 1 tonne might supply roughly 50 liters—enough daily drinking water for about 50 people South China Morning Postwww.ndtv.comChinese Academy of Sciences.
So, Has China Actually Extracted Water Yet?
Not in practice—yet. While the methods have been demonstrated in the lab, there’s no record of on-site extraction on the Moon itself.
Future missions such as Chang’e-7 (targeted for around 2026) will carry instruments—like a mini-hopper and water molecule analyzers—to the lunar south pole to prospect for water and test resource extraction technologies in situ