After having made some vital late-course corrections on Tuesday, NASA's 'Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite' (LCOSS) has bettered its position for punching a hole into the moon's 2-mile-deep south pole crater, Cabeus, at 4:30 a. m. PDT on Friday, likely uncovering signs of water on the moon's surface.

Going by a last month report in the Science magazine, though evidence suggests presence of water in the moon's shaded craters, it is still not clear whether it is in a "meaningful" quantity.

LCOSS, which set out for the moon in June, will strike against the lunar surface at a speed of almost 6,000 mph, and would send up plumes of moon dust - probably ice-laden - 6.2 miles high above Cabeus.

Within four minutes of hitting the targeted area of the crater, the spacecraft will fly through the cloud of debris that will arise from the lunar surface and will expectedly hang around for a very brief period.

Passing through the cloud, the nine instruments aboard the spacecraft will scrutinize the dust and debris for evidence of water, before crashing itself for another hole, 60 feet deep.

About the LCOSS target, Daniel Andrews - chief of the $79-million LCROSS mission, said: "Things are looking great. We're headed right for the target. The very latest data suggest we are headed for one of the very 'wettest spots' on the moon."