An international team led by ETHZ scientists has made visible, using artificial intelligence, the dark areas of the south pole of the Moon. This information could be used in future lunar missions.
“The southern pole of the nocturnal star is exciting for research,” writes the Polytechnic School of Zurich (ETH Zurich) in a press release published on Friday. Due to the angle of inclination of the moon, the Sun moves there along the horizon. It casts long, sometimes permanent shadows in the craters.
It is very cold in these cavities, between -170 and -240 degrees. The temperature there approaches absolute zero, or -273.15 degrees. There is therefore a chance that water vapor or other liquid substances could have been trapped or frozen in or on the lunar soil. If it were warmer, the ice would quickly turn into gas in the sidereal vacuum.
>> Read also: The Moon is even richer in water than expected
No ice on the surface
But what is good for the ice is not good for the observation: many areas remain in the dark. To shed light on them, researchers have used the images taken for more than ten years by the probe’s camera. Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter. This captures the photons reflected in the shadow areas by the mountains and the walls of the craters located nearby.
Thanks to the use of artificial intelligence, this data has made it possible to make hitherto obscure areas visible. Analysis of the images did not reveal the presence of water in the form of ice, although its existence could be proven by other instruments.
>> Thanks to artificial intelligence, dark areas become visible:
Instead of a simple dark shadow image (left), scientists can detect small impact craters, rocks and different ground structures inside the crater. [LPI – ETH Zurich]
“There is no visible indication of pure ice on the surface” in the shaded areas, said Valentin Bickel, postdoctoral fellow at ETHZ, quoted in the press release. “This could mean that the ice is mixed with the lunar soil or that it is hidden under the surface,” adds the lead author of the study published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters.
Exploration routes
According to the Zurich university, these discoveries can have direct consequences for future lunar missions. They can for example give indications on suitable sites for moon landings or on possible routes of exploration.
The research team discovered a series of craters and other features of the lunar surface “unknown until now in dark regions”, underlines Valentin Bickel. Thanks to these images, it is possible to better plan routes and considerably reduce the risks for astronauts or robots.
>> Potential sites for the moon landing missions Artemis:
Oblique view of the lunar south pole and potential Artemis 001 and 004 moon landing sites. This is the region where the research team used the new technique to see into the shadowed interiors of impact craters. [LPI – ETH Zurich]
The study is published three days before the departure of the mission Artemis I from NASA. The rocket is due to take off on Monday, without an astronaut on board, for a 42-day test flight. After this first mission, Artemis II will carry astronauts into orbit around the Moon, without landing there. This honor will be reserved for the crew ofArtemis IIIexpected in 2025 at the earliest.
>> A video in English from NASA summarizing the Artemis mission:
ats/sjaq