China's Chang'e 5 lunar lander has discovered the first on-site

evidence of water molecules on the moon's surface, putting a long-

running scientific debate regarding the satellite's humidity to rest,
according to a study published in the journal Science Advances on
Friday.根据周五发表在《科学进展》杂志上的一项研究，中国的
“嫦娥五号”月球着陆器首次在月球表面发现了水分子的现场
证据，从而平息了长期以来关于这颗卫星湿度的科学争论。
Since the mid-20th century, scientists thought the moon was
completely arid. But in 2020, NASA confirmed via remote
observation that water molecules should be widely distributed
across the lunar surface, though it lacked actual on-site evidence to
support its claims.自 20 世纪中期以来，科学家们认为月球是完

全干旱的。但在 2020 年，美国宇航局通过远程观察证实，水分

子应该广泛分布在月球表面，尽管它缺乏实际的现场证据来支
持这一说法。
Lunar samples retrieved by the Chang'e 5 lunar probe in
December 2020 revealed that the soil at its landing site, the
Northern Oceanus Procellarum basin, contains less than 120 parts
per million water, or 120 grams of water per metric ton. A rock from
the region was found to carry 180 ppm of water, much drier than
those found on Earth.2020 年 12 月，“嫦娥五号”月球探测器取
回的月球样本显示，其着陆点北大洋盆地的土壤含水量低于
120 万分之一，即每公吨 120 克。该地区的一块岩石被发现携带

着百万分之 180 的水，比在地球上发现的要干燥得多。

Scientists believe most of the water in the lunar soil was
implanted by solar wind, which blew hydrogen atoms onto the
surface of the moon, where they reacted with oxygen on the
surface minerals to form water molecules and hydroxyl, a chemical
group that contains one hydrogen atom bonded to one oxygen
atom.科学家认为月球土壤中大部分的水是由太阳风植入,而氢原

子吹到月球表面,表面与氧气反应矿物形成水分子和羟基,化学组
包含一个氢原子连着一个氧原子。
Interestingly, because the rock is somehow wetter than its
surrounding soil, this suggests that there may be extra sources of
water on the moon, such as from its interior, given there is evidence
to suggest the rock may have been ejected from the ground.有趣的
是，由于月球上的岩石比周围的土壤更潮湿，这表明月球上可
能有额外的水源，比如月球内部的水源，因为有证据表明月球
上的岩石可能是从地面喷射出来的。
Lin Honglei, the first author of the study and an associate
researcher at the Chinese Academy of Sciences' Institute of Geology
and Geophysics, said detecting water signals, like water molecules
and hydroxyl, is different from finding actual liquid water.该研究的
第一作者、中国科学院地质与地球物理研究所副研究员林红磊表
示，探测水分子和羟基等水信号与发现真正的液态水是不同的。
Scientists would need to treat rock and soil with heat to extract
water molecules and hydroxyl from them and turn it into liquid
water, he said.他说，科学家需要对岩石和土壤加热，从中提取
水分子和羟基，并将其转化为液态水。
Lin Yangting, one of the study's co-authors, said China's next
two lunar missions-Chang'e 6 and Chang'e 7-hope to examine the
content and distribution of lunar surface water at the same site in
greater detail.该研究的共同作者之一林杨婷表示，中国接下来

的两次探月任务——嫦娥 6 号和嫦娥 7 号——希望更详细地检

测月球表面水的含量和分布
The latest discovery can serve as a foundation for the two
future missions to achieve their scientific objectives, he said.他说，
这一最新发现可以作为未来两项任务实现科学目标的基础。