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CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Scientists have confirmed a cave on the moon, not far from where Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed 55 years ago, and suspect there are hundreds more that could house future astronauts.
An Italian-led team said Monday that there is evidence for a large cavern accessible from the moon’s deepest known pit. It is located on the Sea of Tranquility, just 250 miles (400 kilometers) from the Apollo 11 landing site.
The pit, like the more than 200 others discovered above, was created by the collapse of a lava tube.
Researchers analyzed radar measurements from NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, and compared the results with lava tubes on Earth. Their findings appeared in the journal Nature Astronomy.
The radar data reveals only the initial part of the underground cavity, according to scientists. They estimate that it is at least 130 feet (40 meters) wide and tens of yards (meters) long, probably more.
“The lunar caves have remained a mystery for more than 50 years. So it was exciting to finally be able to demonstrate the existence” of one, Leonardo Carrer and Lorenzo Bruzzone of the University of Trento, wrote in an email.
Most of the pits appear to be located in the moon’s ancient lava plains, according to scientists. It could also be at the south pole of the moon, the expected landing site of NASA astronauts later this decade. Permanent shadow craters are thought to contain frozen water that could provide drinking water and rocket fuel.
During NASA’s Apollo program, 12 astronauts landed on the moon, starting with Armstrong and Aldrin on July 20, 1969.
The findings suggest that there could be hundreds of pits on the moon and thousands of lava tubes. Such places could serve as a natural shelter for astronauts, protecting them from cosmic rays and solar radiation, as well as from micrometeorites. Building the habitats from scratch would be more difficult and challenging, even when taking into account the potential need to reinforce the cave walls to prevent a collapse, the team said.
The rocks and other material in these caves—unaltered by the harsh surface conditions over eons—can also help scientists better understand how the moon developed, especially with its volcanic activity.
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