Permanently shadowed regions (PSRs) at the lunar south pole — Cabeus, Shackleton, Faustini, Haworth, Shoemaker craters
Highest-value lunar volatile. Confirmed by NASA LCROSS impact (Cabeus crater, October 9 2009) and surface mapping by ISRO Chandrayaan-1's Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3). Targeted by Chandrayaan-3 (Vikram landing 23 August 2023, 69°S), IM-2 PRIME-1 (March 2025), Chang'e 7 (2026 NET), and LUPEX (2028 NET). Water becomes propellant (LH2/LOX) and life support.
Surficial ice is patchy and of low abundance; LCROSS measured one impact at one site. Subsurface concentrations and geotechnical accessibility remain unknown — PRIME-1 attempted to drill on IM-2 in March 2025 but landed sideways. Cabeus is at -157°C, requiring power-hungry thermal extraction.