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Cassini VIMS view of water on the Moon

Cassini VIMS view of water on the Moon
Cassini VIMS view of water on the Moon During its August 1999 flyby, Cassini pointed its optical instruments at Earth and the Moon for calibration purposes. Among the data it gathered were several observations with the Visual and Infrared Mapping Spectrometer (VIMS) and photos with the Imaging Science Subsystem (ISS). The top row of images shows the brightness (albedo) of the surface in an infrared wavelength of 2.4 microns (left) and visible wavelengths (right). The bottom row shows the temperature of the lunar surface (left); the strength of a spectral absorption feature at 3 microns that indicates the presence of molecular water (middle); and the strength of a spectral absorption feature at 2.8 microns that indicates the presence of hydroxyl ions (right). Cassini's view of the Moon was not much different from the one we have on Earth. NASA / JPL-Caltech / USGS