Scientists are preparing to launch a spacecraft this week to map the water on the moon, which could help future efforts to colonise the surface.

The Lunar Trailblazer spacecraft, which will launch from NASA's Kennedy Space Centre in Florida, carries a sophisticated camera designed by a team of Oxford University scientists to measure the surface temperature of the moon and identify potential water sites for future extraction, according to the British news agency (PA Media).

Professor Neil Bowles, from the University of Oxford's Department of Physics, said the mission would be "scientifically useful for understanding the lunar water cycle, and also important for future human exploration of the moon."

Scientists have suspected water on the Moon since Indian and American spacecraft spotted signs of minerals containing water molecules in 2009.

"Although the vehicle is relatively small, weighing about 200kg, it has a very important scientific goal," said Professor Neil Bowles. "We think there is water at the Moon's poles in the form of ice, and there may be very thin layers of water on the surface. The mission of the Lunar Trailblazer is to try to map this water and understand its nature."

The vehicle is due to launch on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket at 0017 GMT next Thursday at the earliest, with a launch window of four days.

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