Crashing the Lunar Prospector into the moon failed to detect any signs of water, scientists say.
Earth and space-based telescopes watched as the probe smashed into the lunar surface on July 31. Observers hoped the impact would produce traces of vaporized ice.
Lunar Prospector had spent nearly two years studying the moon's geology. Scientists announced last year that it had detected evidence of large deposits of frozen water in craters at the moon's poles - about 6 billion metric tons of it -- enough to support lunar colonies or manufacturing facilities on the moon.
Mission scientists, including Dr. David Goldstein of the University of Texas, are presenting their findings this week in Italy at a meeting of the American Astronomical Societys Division of Planetary Sciences.
"As expected, we didnt make a big splash or we would have seen the water signal quickly," Goldstein said in a prepared statement.
After prospector finished its mission, scientists planned a controlled crash to try to detect the presence of water.
Researchers say some of the possible reasons the probe failed to find water include:
*The spacecraft might have missed the target.
*The spacecraft might have hit a rock or dry soil at the target site.
*Water molecules may be firmly bound in rocks as hydrated minerals, rather than existing as free ice crystals, and the crash lacked enough energy to separate water from these minerals.
*No water exists in the crater, and the hydrogen detected earlier by the Lunar Prospector was simply that -- pure hydrogen.
*Pre-impact studies were inadequate.
*Parameters used in modeling the vapor gas dynamics were inadequate.
*The telescopes, which have a very small field of view, may not have been pointed correctly.
*Water and other materials may not have risen above the crater wall or otherwise may have jetted away from the telescopes' view.
Goldstein said hed like to search for water again using techniques developed with the impact of Lunar Prospector.
"If we can identify any other spacecraft whose useful life is over, but may have sufficient fuel and controllability to repeat the impact experiment, we'd like to do it again," he said.
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