An Italian-led team of scientists says they have found evidence of a sizable cavern not far from where Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed on the moon 55 years ago.
The cave is located in the Sea of Tranquility, just 250 miles from the landing site of Apollo 11. Researchers believe there are hundreds more caves that could accommodate future astronauts as several countries seek to establish a permanent human base on the moon. Apollo 17 in 1972 was the final flight of the Apollo program.
Scientists say the hole, like more than 200 others discovered there, was formed by the collapse of a lava tube.
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The Pit Crater in the Mare Tranquility where the cave was discovered is about 330 feet deep. (NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University)
The researchers analyzed radar images of the Mare Tranquil Pit (MTP), which has an oval skylight and vertical or overhanging walls, as well as a sloping pit floor that appears to extend further underground, taken by NASA’s lunar rover in 2010, and compared the results to lava tubes on Earth.
“We find that some of the radar returns emanating from the MTP can be attributed to underground cavern conduits several tens of meters long, suggesting that the MTP is connected to an accessible cavern conduit beneath the lunar surface,” the study abstract reads.
“This discovery suggests that the MTP is a promising site for a lunar base, as it could provide refuge from the harsh surface environment and support long-term human exploration of the Moon.”
Scientists say the radar data has revealed only the first part of the underground chamber, which they estimate is at least 130 feet wide and dozens of yards long, possibly more, and is accessible from the MTP, which NASA says is the deepest hole on the moon, at about 330 feet deep.
“The lunar caves have remained a mystery for more than 50 years, so it was exciting to finally prove their existence,” Leonardo Carrell and Lorenzo Bruzzone of the University of Trento said in an email to The Associated Press.
Scientists say most of the holes appear to be in ancient lava plains on the moon, and some may even be on the moon’s south pole, where NASA plans to land astronauts in 10 years’ time. The permanently shadowed craters are thought to contain frozen water that could provide drinking water or rocket fuel.
NASA’s Apollo program landed 12 astronauts on the moon, beginning with Armstrong and Aldrin on July 20, 1969.
On this day in history, June 18, 1983, astronaut Sally Ride became the first American woman in space.
The moon rises behind the Statue of Liberty in New York City on September 18, 2021, as seen from Jersey City, New Jersey. (Gary Hirschhorn/Getty Images)
The findings suggest that the Moon may contain hundreds of pits and thousands of lava tubes. Such sites could provide natural shelter for astronauts, protecting them from cosmic rays, solar radiation and micrometeorite strikes.
Even taking into account that cave walls may need to be reinforced to stop them collapsing, building a habitat from scratch would be even more time-consuming and difficult, the team said.
Mahesh Anand, professor of planetary science and exploration at the UK’s Open University, told National News that lunar habitat conditions in the cave would be less harsh than what astronauts would experience on the moon’s surface.
“For example, there would be less fluctuation in ambient temperature between lunar days and nights and better protection from cosmic radiation and micrometeorite impacts,” he told the media.
“However, the 100-metre (330-foot) deep chute will be difficult to access and will require innovative engineering solutions to establish a sustainable habitat.”
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Two views of the Mare Ingenii pit, another hole on the moon’s surface. Shadow measurements indicate that the Ingenii pit is about 230 feet deep. (NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University)
As part of a renewed focus on human missions, the US, with help from private companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin, aims to send a crew back to the lunar surface by the end of 2025. They plan to land on the moon’s south pole, a permanently shadowed crater believed to be filled with frozen water.
In February, the US witnessed Intuitive Machines’ Odysseus lunar lander land near Malapart A in Antarctica. Moon RegionThis was the first American spacecraft to land on the Moon since the last manned Apollo mission more than 50 years ago.
