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New remote sensing data and improved analytical techniques on collected samples indicate our Moon contains more OH and H2O than previously thought. This revelation has evolved the debate from whether the Moon is wet or dry to whether the lunar water is endogenic or not? For water-related species measurable by remote sensing techniques, new reflectance spectra derived from instruments on 3 different spacecraft suggested that much of the lunar surface has at least minor amounts of OH and H2O, both of which vary spatially. At low solar incidence angles, the observed strengths of water and OH spectral features are different than at higher incidence angles, leading to one possibility that the abundance varies with the diurnal cycle. However the role of topographic/viewing geometry effects and thermal emission in this variability is still under investigation.
Spectral parameter maps for OH and H2O obtained for the whole Moon using Moon Mineralogy Mapper data show that OH/ H2O apparent band depth varies by crustal lithology. We will present preliminary results of our investigation into the behavior of the observed hydrated surface as a function of the material properties of the surface, such as composition, texture, and maturity.
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