The moon is shrinking and this could jeopardize the landing

the The moon is shrinking. This is the result of a study that examined potential landing sites for NASA's Artemis moon missions. in the past Hundreds of millions of years The Earth's satellite has 45 metres It lost its scope.

The reason for this is because it is his essence Steadily Cool down And the moon is with him.”Wither“.This is made Lunar earthquakes and landslides And Faults in Antarctica. There are areas that NASA has selected as potential landing sites. The study was funded by NASA to examine how safe these areas are for potential colonies.

Strong lunar earthquakes cause disturbance

According to the researchers, some landing sites must now be deleted. “Our model suggests that Shallow lunar earthquakes Strong ground vibrations In the Antarctic region,” explains the study’s lead author, Thomas R. Wattersfrom the Center for Earth and Planetary Studies at the National Air and Space Museum.

Lunarquakes are caused by the shrinking size of the Moon. the Shell Then it breaks down and becomes matter Push up. Then these earthquakes form New errors Or existing defects are enhanced. They say that this must be taken into account when choosing a landing site In the current situation.

Loose material on the moon's surface increases the risk

a Shallow earthquake Relatively close to the moon's surface. As is the case on Earth, this can also happen on the Moon Destruction of buildings. On the moon it can last for several hours. “You can imagine the surface of the moon as dry gravel and dust,” he said. Nicholas Scheerco-author of the study.

Appointment Meteorite impacts Make sure the surface material is completely loose. This would increase the possibility of earthquakes and landslides. actually a light Earthquakes can cause disruption. as NASA writesSome of these areas are particularly interesting for their presence ice Suspect.

Strong moonquakes in Antarctica

To map the Moon's seismic activity, researchers used data from the Moon Lunar reconnaissance orbits as well as that Apollo passive seismic networks. Apollo astronauts set up seismometers to record lunar earthquakes. The strongest earthquake ever recorded was his Epicenter At the south pole of the moon.

What's called “to push“, where one tectonic plate pushes over another, causing uplift, and this is due to it. It is in the region De Gerlach Rim 2 – Landing point filter Artemis 3.

➤ Read more: Artemis mission: manned moon landing delayed

Risks of future lunar missions

In order to truly assess risks, researchers must monitor seismic activity at the site Observe the entire moon. Future projects should provide this data. “The closer we get to the launch of a manned Artemis mission, the more important it is that we have astronauts, equipment and infrastructure in place.” As safe as possible says Cher. Research helps prepare for the moon. The study appeared In the Journal of Planetary Science.