{
  "id": 15750726,
  "title": "The Moon is Still Shrinking as it Cools. That Could Create a Hazard for Lunar Mission.",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/20/the-moon-is-still-shrinking-as-it-cools-that-could-create-a-hazard",
  "topic": "science",
  "section": "Science",
  "published": "2026-10-20T13:56:57.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Universe Today",
    "slug": "universe-today",
    "url": "https://www.universetoday.com/articles/the-moon-is-still-shrinking-as-it-cools-that-could-create-a-hazard-for-lunar-mission"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Scientists have observed that the Moon is continuously shrinking as it cools. This is evidenced by the presence of young thrust fault scarps on the lunar surface. Researchers from the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum have calculated an updated rate of shrinkage for the Moon, which is detailed in a study published in The Planetary Science Journal.\n\nThe Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), which has been orbiting the Moon for 17 years, has captured images of thousands of these young fault scarps in the lunar highlands and mare regions. These scarps are small-scale faults that form as the Moon continues to cool and contract. The LRO's observations have revealed the extensive distribution and quantity of these fault scarps, which were not previously known to be as widespread.\n\nThe research team, led by Thomas Watters, suggests that the Moon underwent a period of late-stage contraction around 3.6 billion years ago when it transitioned from an extensional to a compressional stress bias. This phase of contraction was driven by the diminishing heat source from radioactive decay, leading to the formation of the observed faults. Since then, the Moon has been cooling and contracting, causing the material within its crust to be forced upward and creating the observed thrust faults.\n\nAccording to Watters, the number of these young faults is significantly greater than previously estimated. As the Moon continues to cool and contract, the formation of new faults is expected to persist. These faults and the related shallow Moonquakes pose a potential hazard for future lunar missions, emphasizing the importance of understanding this ongoing geological process.",
  "summary": "The Moon is slowly cooling and slowly shrinking. A study of its scarp faults calculates the rate of shrinkage, showing that it's extremely small. But the shrinking could still create landslides, a potential hazard for missions to the lunar surface.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Space.com",
        "title": "The moon is shrinking. 10,000 cracks on the lunar surface reveal by how much",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/19/the-moon-is-shrinking-10-000-cracks-on-the-lunar-surface-reveal-by",
        "published": "2026-10-19T19:00:00.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}