Since the first moon landing, scientists have been wondering if it’d be possible to establish a settlement on the Moon. Now, for the first time in history, there might be a “naturally” occurring solution. If you’ve ever dreamed of a place on the Moon where you could seek shelter from the harsh lunar weather, your dream might not be so far-fetched. Scientists have just discovered a cave of an unexpected size.
A lunar tunnel. NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) has captured images revealing a large lava tube that could potentially house a future Moon colony. Researchers from the University of Trento in Italy made this discovery, which is the first accessible lunar subsurface cave to be identified.
According to Lorenzo Bruzzone, a professor at the University of Trento, “These caves have been theorized for over 50 years, and it is the first time ever that we have demonstrated their existence.”
Size and location. The cave is located in Mare Tranquillitatis, the lava plain where Neil Armstrong first set foot on the Moon in 1969 on the Apollo 11 mission. Radar data suggest that the cave is about 150 feet wide and up to 260 feet long. Researchers say that it’s not the most suitable place to build a future colony, but where there’s one cave, there could be many more.
In an official statement, Bruzzone mentioned that the Miniature Radio-Frequency (Mini-RF) instrument had already collected data on the location in 2020, including a pit in Mare Tranquilitatis. Scientists later analyzed this data with new processing techniques, discovering radar reflections in the pit area that are best explained by a subway cave conduit. “This discovery provides the first direct evidence of an accessible lava tube under the surface of the Moon,” he said.
What do scientists know about the pit? Mare Tranquillitatis is the deepest known lunar pit. It’s about 330 feet wide and has steep overhanging walls, making it one of the few large enough for internal features to be detected using LRO radar. In fact, the recent University of Trento study revealed a bright spot on the west side of the borehole in radar images.
The tunnel’s location.
Although the cave’s measurements suspected in the simulations wouldn’t accommodate a city, researchers believe it’s large enough to house a lunar base. Additionally, they think the cave floor is flat enough to be usable (it could have a maximum slope of 45 degrees). While there’s a distance of more than 330 feet from the cave entrance to the surface, in the low lunar gravity, this might not be a major impediment.
Advantages of living in a cave on the Moon.Researchers say that building a lunar base in a cave provides significant advantages. As Gizmodo reports, these include better protection against cosmic rays and solar radiation, which can be harmful to humans and constantly bombard the lunar surface.
Furthermore, caves provide thermal stability (inside, temperatures are more stable), protection against micrometeorites (the rocks of the cave provide a natural shield against impacts), and access to valuable resources such as ice water and minerals due to their proximity to these natural sources.
A complicated life. Yet, Mare Tranquillitatis isn’t suitable for living. This is mainly due to the lack of an important ingredient for inhabiting the Moon: ice. Scientists believe frozen water is present at the lunar poles, especially at the south pole, driving the race to land there.
Any ice near the surface of the equatorial plane, such as Mare Tranquillitatis, would’ve evaporated long ago in the scorching lunar days. Even though this region is close to where Armstrong took his famous “small step,” it doesn’t make up for the lack of water available to drink.
Other places more suitable for living. Nonetheless, the discovery of this cave increases the likelihood of lava tubes existing at the poles, and more importantly, it gives scientists hope that they can locate them with slightly higher resolution from space.
Image | NASA
View 0 comments