Dark moon craters can host microbes, and this can be a problem as human exploitation intensifies.
A new study at the 56th Conference on Lunar and Planetary Science is concentrated in the permanently shaded moon regions (PSRS), areas that are in craters near the lunar poles and that remained in complete darkness for potentially thousands of millions of years Due to the slight axial tilt of the moon of only 1.5 degrees.
York University scientists in Canada suggest that these cold and dark environments can preserve microbial life for long periods.
The investigation focused on the craters Shackleton e Faustini – Both key targets for the upcoming NASA Artemis missions. The goal was to evaluate whether the extreme cold and the lack of ultraviolet radiation in these craters could allow the survival of microbes, especially those that are accidentally brought from the earth through spaceships.
“In space, microbes are usually destroyed by heat and UV light,” explained the study author, “but PSRs are very cold and dark, which offers protection that can keep viable microbial spores for decades-even if they can’t grow or replicate actively.” Although these organisms are not active, their cellular structures and organic molecules can remain intact for much longer.
This has two implicationsexplains the. First, research helps scientists understand where to exist or survive life beyond the earth. Second, it raises concerns about the contamination of immaculate lunar environments, especially as human exploitation intensifies. Unlike robotic missions, which can be carefully sterilized, human explorers are much more difficult to decontaminate – and inevitably carry microbial life with them.
The risk is not only theoretical. Missions such as NASA’s 2009 LCross, which stuffed in the PSR Cratera Cabes, near the southern pole of the moon, may have already taken terrestrial microbes for these sheltered regions. Although the hypotheses of microbial survival after these high -speed impacts are low, studies suggest that a small number of spores can survive under specific conditions.
Dr. Moores stresses that the goal is not only planetary protection, but also the preservation of these regions for future scientific investigations. Contamination could compromise the investigationas the analysis of water ice for clues about the moon history and the origin of organic molecules in the solar system.
