Moon craters with moderate temperatures could harbor astronauts

Data from NASA’s probe and suggest lunar drilling It enjoys comfortable temperatures due to its overhanging shade, keeping it cool during the day and prevent Heat from escaping in night.

It’s hard to believe now, but the moon’s seemingly inert surface was littered with volcanic activity. Today, we see evidence of this in the form of craters scattered on the surface of the Moon. We’ve been privy to these craters for nearly 15 years, but recent research suggests that temperatures within them can be cooler—and arguably more comfortable—than the surface around them.

Data collected by NASA The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter places the interior of the craters at a relatively constant temperature of 63 degrees Fahrenheit (17.2 degrees Celsius) throughout the lunar day/night cycle. If confirmedthis is Will be make them mature goals to explore and human Residence.

“Lunar craters are a wonderful feature on the surface of the moon,” said Noah Petrou at NASA. Yesterday’s press release. Petro is an LRO project scientist based at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. “Knowing that they create a stable thermal environment helps us paint a picture of these unique lunar features and the prospect of one day exploring them.”

These results were published earlier this month in Geophysical Research Letters by scientists from the University of California at Los Angeles and the University of Colorado, Boulder. “About 16 of the more than 200 craters are likely to be collapsed lava tubes,” project leader Tyler Horvath said in a NASA press release. The researchers note that some craters have overhanging craters – a key feature that could provide future lunar explorers with protection from incoming cosmic rays, micrometeoroids, and wild fluctuations in surface temperature.

According to NASA, the moon’s surface can reach 260 degrees Fahrenheit (126.7 degrees Celsius) and the lows of -280 degrees Fahrenheit (-173.3 degrees Celsius). But these overhangs seem to shade the pits during the day while preventing heat from escaping at night, resulting in About a constantly moderate temperature 63 degrees Fahrenheit (17.2 degrees Celsius).

As NASA’s efforts to return humans to the moon Intensification, creative methods of long-term stays on the moon are gaining importance. While it is not clear exactly how (even if) NASA will work on these pits in its mission plans, the opportunity to rely on stable temperatures presents An interesting possibility.

more: What to know about Moon Gate, NASA’s future lunar orbit space station