The researchers from Sun Yat‐sen University, Fuzhou University and Shanghai Normal University stated that their findings will assist in selecting more stable sites for future lunar bases as China expands its space exploration objectives.
While new impact events created 30% of new landslides, most of them were caused by moonquakes from within the lunar body, their analysis found.
Unlike an earthquake, which lasts for a few seconds or minutes, a moonquake can last for hours, which is sufficient time to destroy or tip over facilities, unsettle launch vehicles, or disrupt surface operations.
“Human civilisation has never been closer to establishing permanent infrastructures on the moon, which will serve as scientific research stations and/or deep-space outposts,” the study highlighted, according to a report in the South China Morning Post.
“While moonquakes were detected during the
Apollo missions, conventional geological wisdom posited that lunar endogenic activity had essentially ceased, leaving geological hazard assessments of lunar seismicity largely unexplored,” the team added.
“Among known triggers of landslides on the moon, endogenic seismic activity is the most plausible cause for most of the detected new landslides. While sources of endogenic seismic activity on the moon are not completely understood yet, this interpretation aligns with the current thermal state of the moon, that the lunar interior remains active enough to drive endogenic seismic activity,” the researchers said.
While the observed landslides were relatively small—mostly less than 1 kilometre long and 100 meters wide—researchers advise caution. According to the lead author, Professor Xiao Zhiyong from Sun Yat-sen University, the landslides are relatively small, but caution is necessary.
“It provides reassurance that the landslides we observed are likely to have limited impacts. Still, we should remain cautious because disaster assessments from Earth may not be fully applicable on the moon. Operations close to steep slopes may be threatened more by active landslides,” he said.
According to Xiao, moonquakes produced seismic waves that attenuated, or lost energy, very slowly since the lunar surface was dry with minimal water. “China’s Chang’e-8 lunar mission will carry a seismometer near the lunar south pole to detect moonquakes,” he added.
Study co-author Zhang Wuming, a professor at Sun Yat-sen University, stated that the team created a method to perfectly match high-resolution satellite photos of the same sites collected at different periods.
The findings will aid in selecting safer sites for future lunar bases, such as China’s planned research station at the Moon’s south pole by 2035.