A spectacular front cover of the journal Science, 19th March 2010, shows an image from the Cassini probe of a closeup of Saturn's rings. These rings are composed of variable-sized chunks of water ice containing coloured compounds, apparently partly fed by icy plumes jetting from at least one of its moons.
Water has also been found on the moon at the poles and even scattered over the lunar surface.
Recent data shows that Mars was once a 'blue' watery planet like Earth before it turned to red dust.
In comparison, 70% of our planet's surface is covered with water, but only 1% is drinkable. This may feel like its easier to find new sources of water extraterrestially rather than in our backyard. So when an a recent United Nations conference was held in Eqypt, a member of NASA proposed that the MARSIS (Mars Advanced Radar for Subsurface and Ionospheric Sounding) probe that found the massive Martian water deposits could also be used to find water in our own deserts, we need to sit up and take notice. According to Dr. Essam Heggy, the MARSIS radar can detect water up to a kilometre beneath the surface, so that it could be used to determine the sites of new wells and artificial oases.
Don't we just want the water to be available for all now here on Earth?If we won't stump up for space-age technology to be used here on Earth, how about giving dowsing another try? Dowsing is an ages-old method of divining the location of ground water, even oil, gemstones and archeology, using one or two divining sticks or rods. Its veracity has been regularly challenged by sceptics over the years, but then so has the size of the budget spent on space exploration.
