Even the Earth on the Moon wobbles and it could upset NASA – Ouest-France Evening Edition

The Artemis III mission is approaching its 2026 launch date and geologists are concerned about the impact of moonquakes and landslides. But what do lunar earthquakes actually look like? This is the “So Stupid Question”, which we answer in the Evening Edition podcast.

The conquest of the moon has been going on for many years. If the Artemis III mission is still on the agenda for NASA (September 2026), many obstacles must be considered, with the aim of quickly sending humans to our only satellite or even sustainable colonies.

As the specialized site space.com writes, it will be necessary to choose the best landing site for the rocket. Some parameters come into consideration: the shape of the land, the amount of water hidden below the surface, etc. A new problem arises: In a study published in the journal The Planetary Science Journal, some geologists have just warned about lunar earthquakes and landslides.

“As we approach the crew @NASAArtemis It is important to protect the mission’s launch date, our astronauts, our equipment and infrastructure as much as possible.” @umdgeologyNick Schmerer said @Intengineering. https://t.co/167ysBjtOJ

— UMD Science (@UMDscience) January 29, 2024

By examining the region near the planned lunar landing site for Artemis III, researchers identified fault lines caused by landslides that may have caused a large lunar earthquake some fifty years ago.

The moon cools, withdraws and shrinks like a dry cause

Lunar earthquakes are similar to earthquakes on Earth: plates move, collide, or rub together and produce vibrations. On the Moon, this movement is not the result of magmatic activity but the cooling of the moon over millions of years. As it cools, it contracts and shrinks. Experts even compare it to raisins.

So landing on the moon could prove dangerous in certain areas, especially because contrary to what one might believe, the moon’s surface is less dense than Earth’s and the soil is more unstable, hence vulnerable. “As we approach the launch date of the Artemis manned mission, it is important to keep our astronauts, equipment and infrastructure as safe as possible”

declared Nicholas Schmer, a geologist and co-author of a study on the subject.