Some craters on the moon, located in the permanent shadow, are also thought to contain frozen water that could provide drinking water and fuel for future missions.
A cave has been discovered on the moon not far from where Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed 55 years ago, raising hopes that there could be hundreds more that could house future astronauts.
An Italian-led team reported earlier this week that there is evidence of a large cavern accessible from the deepest known crater on the moon.
It is located in the Sea of Tranquility, just 400 km from the Apollo 11 landing site.
The crater, like the more than 200 people discovered there, was created by the collapse of a lava tube.
Such places can serve as a natural shelter for astronauts, protecting them from cosmic rays and solar radiation, as well as from the impact of micrometeorites.
The researchers analyzed radar measurements from NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter and compared the results to those from lava tubes on Earth. Their findings were published in the journal Nature Astronomy.
Scientists say that radar data reveals only the initial part of the underground cavity. They believe that its width is at least 40 m, and its length is several tens of meters, probably more.
“The lunar caves remained a mystery for more than 50 years. Leonardo Carrer and Lorenzo Bruzzone of the University of Trento told The Associated Press that it was exciting to finally prove the existence of one of them.
Shelter with drinking water
According to scientists, most of the craters appear to be located in the ancient lava plains of the Moon.
There may also be some at the lunar south pole, a planned landing site for NASA astronauts later this decade.
The permanently shadowed craters are thought to contain frozen water that could provide potable water and rocket fuel.
During NASA’s Apollo program, 12 astronauts landed on the moon on July 20, 1969, starting with Armstrong and Aldrin.
The results suggest that the moon may have hundreds of craters and thousands of lava tubes that could serve as natural shelters for future manned missions.
The group said it would be longer and more difficult to build habitats from scratch, even with the potential need to reinforce cave walls to prevent collapse.
The rocks and other materials inside these caves—unaltered by centuries of harsh surface conditions—can help scientists better understand how the moon evolved, particularly in relation to its volcanic activity.