Scientists have made a groundbreaking discovery of a massive crater on the moon, surpassing the size of the iconic Roman Colosseum. This colossal crater, measuring 222 meters wide and up to 43 meters deep, is the largest known impact crater in the solar system created in recent history.
The event, caused by a powerful impact that occurred two years ago and went unnoticed initially, is a rare occurrence, estimated to happen only once every 132 years. This discovery holds significant value as NASA plans to establish a lunar base for astronauts.
According to researchers in two studies published in Science Advances, the crater was identified by NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) in May 2024 shortly after its formation from an asteroid or comet fragment. The impact was not detected in real-time by telescopes on Earth or in space.
Named after the late Thomas McGetchin, a former director of Houston’s Lunar and Planetary Institute, the crater altered over 100 kilometers of the lunar surface. The impact resulted in the expulsion of dust and rocky soil at a higher angle than anticipated, as explained by Mark Robinson, the chief scientist for LRO’s cameras at Intuitive Machines.
Furthermore, a study found a seven-kilometer-wide cold region surrounding the new crater, indicating a disturbance in the moon’s topsoil. Co-author David Paige of the University of California, Los Angeles, likened this phenomenon to gardening, where impacts serve as a method to churn the regolith, the loose material on the moon’s surface.
The LRO’s ongoing discoveries reveal that the top two centimeters of the moon’s soil are overturned by ejected material every 80,000 years, a faster rate than previously believed. Robinson dispelled the notion that the footprints left by Apollo moonwalkers will endure indefinitely, stating they will likely vanish within that timeframe.
The next phase involves assessing the risk of crater material reaching NASA’s proposed moon base to enhance structural resilience and minimize potential damage.
