Is Earth in Danger as the Moon Shrinks?

Bright Side

So, the Moon is actually shrinking a bit, which might sound kind of alarming at first. But don't worry, Earth isn't in any danger because of this lunar shrinkage. This process causes some moonquakes and surface cracks, which are pretty fascinating to study. Think of it like a raisin – as the Moon cools down, it wrinkles and contracts a bit. It’s a natural process that has been happening for a long, long time. These moonquakes are nowhere near as powerful as the earthquakes we experience here on Earth, so they’re not really a threat. But will it change in the future?  Credit: CC BY 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/:  Simeon Schmauß:  Pragyan rampdown, https://flic.kr/p/2oZUSxx  Pragyan turn, https://flic.kr/p/2oZS83X  Rupes Recta: Georgi Georgiev, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rupes_Recta_and_Rima_Birt.jpg  NASA  NASA (image by Apollo 10)  Indian Space Research Organisation  Patricia Moore  NASA/LROC/ASU/Smithsonian Institution  James Stuby based on NASA image  NASA  Edgar D. Mitchell / NASA  Animation is created by Bright Side.  #brightside   Animation is created by Bright Side.  ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Music from TheSoul Sound: https://thesoul-sound.com/   Listen to Bright Side on:  Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/0hUkPxD34jRLrMrJux4VxV Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/idhttps-podcasts-apple-com-podcast-bright-side/id1554898078 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Our Social Media: Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/brightside/ Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/brightside.official/ Tik Tok - https://www.tiktok.com/@brightside.official?lang=en Snapchat - https://www.snapchat.com/p/c6a1e38a-bff1-4a40-9731-2c8234ccb19f/1866144599336960  Stock materials (photos, footages and other):  https://www.depositphotos.com  https://www.shutterstock.com  https://www.eastnews.ru  ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- For more videos and articles visit: http://www.brightside.me

Transcript

00:00Don't get all upset, but the Moon is shrinking and getting wrinkled, pretty much like a grape

00:06turning into a raisin.

00:08That happens because our natural satellite has been retaining its inner heat for over

00:124 billion years.

00:14But its core is gradually cooling down and becoming more dense, like me.

00:19Unlike a grape's flexible skin, the Moon's surface is pretty brittle.

00:23This brittleness causes faults to form where different sections of the crust push up against

00:28each other, leading to what scientists call moonquakes.

00:33So far, our satellite has shrunk by around 150 feet in circumference.

00:38It's such a tiny change that it won't affect the look of eclipses or the phases of the

00:42Moon.

00:43Even tidal cycles won't be affected since the Moon's mass hasn't really changed.

00:49The shrinking process won't directly affect us down here, but that doesn't mean that

00:54all humans are safe.

00:58Moonquakes caused by the shrinking process have been a concern for years.

01:03During the famous Apollo missions, NASA astronauts left seismometers at different points on the

01:08Moon.

01:09Those are devices capable of identifying seismic activity on the lunar surface with exceptional

01:15precision.

01:16The equipment was operational for several years, and it managed to capture over 12,000

01:21moonquakes, ranging in magnitudes from 2 to 5.

01:26Up until 1977, the team was able to identify four distinct types of quakes.

01:33Some tremors, like those caused by meteorite impacts, were relatively easy to identify.

01:39But the cause of the so-called shallow moonquakes remains a mystery to scientists, and that

01:44can be an obstacle to future missions on lunar soil.

01:49As the name suggests, shallow moonquakes occur relatively close to the surface, typically

01:54between 30 to 135 miles beneath the surface.

01:59Recent research suggests that these tremors are triggered by the compression of the Moon's

02:04surface, leading to the formation of thrust faults, where one surface layer is pushed

02:09up over another.

02:11This study also discovered where the epicenters of the strongest ones were.

02:16It all started in the South Pole region, precisely where we want to settle down.

02:22Interest in the lunar South Pole peaked in 2023, when India's Chunduran mission successfully

02:28landed and deployed a rover to explore the area.

02:31NASA also has plans for the same spot.

02:34And their ambitious goal is to take astronauts there for the very first time.

02:39The Artemis III mission, scheduled for 2026, currently has 13 potential landing spots at

02:45the South Pole, represented by the blue squares here.

02:49One of the options is situated within a geological feature called the Gerlach Rim 2, which is

02:54a strategic area for exploration.

02:57It might have ice, because parts of it are completely in the dark.

03:00But it's close enough to areas that do have sunlight, which is crucial as a source of

03:04power.

03:05Now, take a look at the pink dots on that same map.

03:09They represent possible epicenters of the strongest moonquakes recorded by the Apollo

03:14missions.

03:15That means that thrust faults in the area could be relatively young and potentially

03:20active, representing a real danger to the Artemis III crew.

03:25These astronauts will journey to lunar orbit over the course of 30 days, and two crew members

03:30will descend to the surface, spending about a week at the South Pole.

03:34Their moonwalk will be particularly challenging, given the extreme temperatures of these permanently

03:39shadowed regions.

03:41The presence of moonquakes and possible landslides only adds more danger to this mission, as

03:47this phenomenon is far more frightening than earthquakes.

03:53The strongest moonquake ever recorded had a magnitude of 5.7.

03:58You might think that's not a big deal, considering that countries like Chile, Colombia, and Papua

04:04New Guinea experienced earthquakes of similar magnitude in 2023 without significant damage.

04:12But the gravitational pull on the moon is relatively weaker than on Earth, so what feels

04:17like a gentle tremor on our planet might be a real ground-shaking event up there.

04:22This happens because you're not as firmly connected to the surface of the moon as you

04:26are on Earth, meaning that seismic waves can cause the surface to move more freely.

04:33There's also a huge difference in duration.

04:37Earthquakes typically last between 10 and 30 seconds, with some lasting up to 2 minutes.

04:43A moonquake can persist much, much longer than that.

04:46Our satellite is essentially a solid, rigid, and dry sphere, so when a tremor shakes the

04:52moon's surface, it resonates powerfully without any natural means of dissipation.

04:58Moonquakes can last for a good 10 minutes, or even longer, with little tremors sticking

05:02around for hours afterwards.

05:06These new findings about shallow moonquakes won't actually change the potential landing

05:10sites for Artemis III, and they won't affect the duration of the mission either.

05:16That's because accurately estimating how often a specific region experiences these

05:20tremors is tricky and unpredictable.

05:24What scientists do know is that these shallow quakes aren't very common and pose a low

05:28risk to short-term missions on the lunar surface.

05:32But that situation changes completely if we consider long-term habitation on the moon,

05:38and that could happen sooner than we expect.

05:43The Artemis III mission represents an important first step toward space colonization.

05:49China is also making the first moves to establish a permanent lunar base at the South Pole by

05:532040.

05:55Their strategy involves utilizing 3D printing and brick production from lunar soil for constructing

06:01the moon base.

06:03That definitely sounds fascinating, but putting together a setup like that comes with a bunch

06:07of challenges.

06:10Including dealing with intense cosmic radiation, the lack of water, and, of course, long-lasting

06:15moonquakes.

06:19Over billions of years, the surface of the moon has been hit by asteroids and comets,

06:24causing bits and pieces to constantly break off from the impacts.

06:27Because of this, all the surface material is pretty loosely packed.

06:31So when there are quakes, slopes in the same area can become susceptible to landslides

06:37or new faults opening up.

06:39Future settlements located too close to these unstable slopes could put everyone living

06:44inside these lunar bases at risk.

06:47Moon dust adds another layer of complexity because, without erosion or water to smooth

06:52it out, it can harden to the point of being as tough as glass.

06:58If we really want to understand how dangerous moonquakes might be for people living and

07:02working on the moon in the future, space agencies still need to map out and get new seismic

07:07data.

07:08And not just from the South Pole, but from the entire satellite.

07:12In 2025, the Farside Seismic Suite Mission, or FSS, plans to deploy two of the most high-precision

07:20seismometers ever built to the Schrödinger crater, which is located on the dark side

07:25of the moon.

07:26Finding out what's happening on the ground there is crucial for understanding the complex

07:30lunar structure and its internal dynamics.

07:34I mean, scientists are still trying to figure out whether the lack of recorded seismic activity

07:40on the far side of the moon is due to current instruments not being capable of detecting

07:45it.

07:46Or if it's due to some kind of interference from melted material in the mantle.

07:51Once they have this answer, it will be easier to fully understand the phenomenon of shallow

07:56moonquakes and assess their implications for future neighborhoods on our natural satellite.

08:03You may have heard that Earth is also shrinking, but it's a different process.

08:07Basically, the moon is getting smaller mainly because its core is cooling down naturally.

08:14The Earth's core is cooling too, but our planet got its crust with tectonic plates

08:18unlike the moon, which only has one plate.

08:22So the energy from Earth's core shifts those plates around or comes through volcanic eruptions.

08:29Earth is actually losing mass overall due to atmospheric loss.

08:33Our planet loses about 100 million pounds of mass per year, mostly from a leaky atmosphere.

08:40Earth's gravity isn't strong enough to retain the lightest particles, like hydrogen and helium,

08:45which escape into space.

08:47But don't worry, these numbers aren't cause for alarm, considering that our planet's

08:52atmosphere weighs about 5 quadrillion tons, a number I can't even imagine.

08:57So in other words, it would take many, many, many times the current age of the universe

09:02for it to completely evaporate.

09:04Well that makes me breathe easier, how about you?

09:10That's it for today!

09:11So hey, if you pacified your curiosity, then give the video a like and share it with your

09:15friends!

09:16Or if you want more, just click on these videos and stay on the Bright Side!

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