Quakes on The Moon Are Far More Widespread Than We Realized : ScienceAlert

The Moon Is Still Shrinking — And It’s Causing More Earthquakes Than We Thought

In a groundbreaking discovery that’s shaking up lunar science, researchers have unveiled the first-ever global map of fault ridges across the Moon’s vast volcanic plains — and the findings are electrifying.

Forget the idea of the Moon as a cold, dead rock. New evidence shows our celestial neighbor is still tectonically alive, with fault lines rippling across its dark basalt seas like wrinkles on an aging apple.

A Global Picture of Lunar Contraction

Led by geologist Cole Nypaver from the Smithsonian Institution, the team analyzed high-resolution images from NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter to identify 1,114 previously undocumented small mare ridges (SMRs) on the Moon’s near side. When combined with earlier surveys, that brings the total to a staggering 2,634 fault segments mapped across both hemispheres.

These aren’t just scattered anomalies — they’re part of a global contraction system, mirroring similar features in the lunar highlands known as lobate scarps. The discovery suggests the Moon is shrinking uniformly, with both terrains responding to the same deep-seated stresses.

Recent Activity — In Geological Terms

Here’s where it gets really interesting: some of these ridges are shockingly young. Using crater counting techniques — where fewer small craters near a ridge indicate more recent seismic activity — the researchers dated the youngest features to just 50 million years ago. The average age? Around 124 million years.

That might sound ancient, but in geological terms, it’s practically yesterday. For comparison, the dinosaurs went extinct about 66 million years ago. These faults are still active, and they’re capable of producing shallow moonquakes strong enough to reshape the surface.

The Moon: A Drying-Out Apple

As the Moon continues to cool from its molten origins 4.5 billion years ago, it’s contracting like a fruit left out to dry. This process creates compressional features — the SMRs and lobate scarps — that deform the lunar crust.

“The widespread presence of recently or currently seismically active tectonic features across the maria provides new opportunities for future lunar missions,” the researchers note. But it also raises red flags.

Implications for Future Lunar Bases

If you’re planning to build a moon base, this news might make you pause. These shallow moonquakes pose a serious hazard to human infrastructure. The maria, once considered prime real estate for landing sites and habitats due to their flat, stable appearance, may be far more geologically active than anyone realized.

Understanding where and when these quakes occur is now critical for mission planning, especially as NASA and other space agencies eye the Moon for long-term exploration and potential colonization.

A Dynamic, Contracting Moon

“The Moon’s shrinkage has left its mark on both the rocky highlands and the smooth, dark volcanic plains,” explains geologist Tom Watters, co-author of the study. “Our detection of young, small ridges in the maria, and our discovery of their cause, completes a global picture of a dynamic, contracting moon.”

This isn’t just about mapping pretty pictures — it’s about understanding the Moon’s interior, its thermal and seismic history, and its future evolution. Every new fault mapped is another piece of the puzzle in figuring out what’s happening beneath the lunar surface.

What This Means for Science

The findings dramatically expand the inventory of possible seismic sources on the Moon, broadening our toolkit for understanding its ongoing evolution. It also opens new doors for future lunar missions, offering fresh targets for seismic monitoring and geological investigation.

As we prepare to return to the Moon with renewed vigor, this research reminds us that our closest celestial neighbor is far from a static relic. It’s a living, breathing — albeit slowly shrinking — world with its own tectonic heartbeat.

The research has been published in The Planetary Science Journal.

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