To answer these questions, researchers require advanced tools for collecting and analysing lunar samples directly. This is the goal of the European Space Agency’s PROSPECT payload: a versatile package that will be delivered to the Moon in 2027 by a commercial lander, in partnership with NASA.

Developed by an international industrial and academic team led by ESA, PROSPECT could soon enable researchers to make strides in our understanding of the Moon’s natural resources. It features two key elements: a drill capable of sampling icy regolith named ProSEED that is provided by Leonardo S.p.A. in Italy, and a sophisticated instrument package named ProSPA developed by the Open University in the UK.

PROSPECT’s ProSEED drill will penetrate up to one metre beneath the lunar surface to collect cryogenic samples. Its unique design ensures minimal losses of volatile chemicals trapped within the samples, which allows the volatile constituents to be analysed accurately.

These samples will then be delivered to the Sample Inlet System of the ProSPA lab. Here, they will be tightly sealed inside miniaturised ovens, which will heat the samples to release the volatile gases contained in them. The lab will then examine these gases using mass spectrometers, to determine their chemical and isotopic composition.

The ProSPA instruments will also be complemented by tools integrated into the ProSEED drill: including multispectral cameras to capture images of the drilling site and the excavated subsurface material; temperature sensors to monitor sample conditions; and a permittivity sensor to assess regolith properties and probe the abundance of water ice beneath the lunar surface.

ProSEED and ProSPA are designed to work together seamlessly, providing the PROSPECT team with a unified, easy-to-use interface for collecting samples, extracting their volatile gases, and analysing their compositions.

Together, these components will allow the PROSPECT science team to develop a comprehensive understanding of the lunar environment. They will play a key role in exploring the Moon’s polar regions, where useful resources including water ice could be abundant.

As humanity returns to the Moon for the first time in over 50 years, ESA is hopeful that technologies including ProSEED and ProSPA could help us to understand and ultimately harvest some of the Moon’s natural resources. This could prove vital to establishing permanent habitable bases on the Moon: opening up an exciting new chapter in lunar exploration.