The Moon is Alive: Earthquakes and Shifts Pose No Threat to Future Space Missions

The moon has ceased all geological activity for millions of years has long established itself as a consensus. This hypothesis was based in particular on data from Apollo missions and the absence of direct observations of recent phenomena. However, a team of Chinese researchers led by Zhiyong Xiao has revealed a series of landslides that since 2009 on unstable lunar slopes. In all, 41 shifts were identified thanks to the comparison of 562 pairs of images captured by the NAC camera of the American probe Lunar orbit recognition, analyzed with precision less than one meter per pixel.

These ground movements are small, often less than a kilometer long and 100 meters wide. They only move a small volume of regolith, less than 100,000 m³ per event. However, their geographical distribution is not random. The majority of them are concentrated in areas known to be geologically active, in particular the Embrium basin, a region marked by old impacts and recent tectonic deformations. This targeted location contradicts the idea of ​​a fully frozen moon since the Copernican era.

Lunar earthquakes, a more frequent phenomenon than expected

Researchers first considered that meteoritic impacts can be the cause of these shifts. By crossing the collapse areas with the position of the new craters formed recently, they noted that less than a third of the shifts could be directly linked to an impact. In most cases, no trace of collision was visible in the immediate vicinity. The privileged hypothesis is then that of another type of disturbance. Lunar earthquakes.

These tremors can be triggered by gliments of internal faults or tectonic readjustments. Unlike terrestrial earthquakes, lunar seismic waves spread very slowly through dry and compact soil, losing little energy on the way. This means that a moderate lunar tremor can shake the surface for several hours, a potentially devastating phenomenon for surface structures.

The study published in the national journal Science Review specifies that 71% of the slipples identified have no visible link with a meteorite impact. Their distribution suggests a concentration of seismic activity in certain areas, in particular in the northern hemisphere of the visible side. The supposed epicenter of this activity would therefore be located in the Imbrium basin, where several shifts have been detected on the craters' walls like Aristillus or Gambart A. This concentration of events indicates the probable existence of seismic areas still active in depth.

What it changes for human and robotic exploration

The prospect of building lasting lunar bases, whether within the framework of the Chinese Chang'e program or the American program Artemis, requires a rigorous re -evaluation of geological risks. If the landslides detected so far are relatively modest, they nevertheless pose a security challenge for future infrastructure, in particular those located near steep slopes or active flaws.

Interesting Engineering underlines the interest of this data to plan the next deployments of seismometers on the Moon. By specifically locating the areas subject to slippells, the upcoming missions will not only be able to anticipate the risks, but also better understand the internal structure of the satellite. This is one of the objectives of the Chinese mission Chang'e-8 planned for 2029, which will embark a seismometer intended for the region of the Lunar South Pole.

This revival of geological activity on the Moon also offers a unique opportunity to test technologies designed to withstand extreme environments. As the Independent points out, the installation of a lunar advanced position would serve as a test bench for Martian missions, faced with similar, even more severe constraints. The lunar surface, far from being inert, is thus revealed as an active laboratory of the planet Earth, a life -size field of experimentation for our space future.