Scientists propose searching lunar regolith for extraterrestrial technosignatures
Researchers have proposed searching lunar regolith for microscopic fragments of artificial materials that could theoretically have reached the Moon from other star systems. This does not concern discovered evidence of extraterrestrial civilizations, but rather a new approach to searching for possible technological traces of their existence, Live Science reports.
The Moon as a repository of cosmic dust
The authors of the study note that the Moon has no functional atmosphere, magnetic field, water or tectonic activity. As a result, its surface is constantly exposed to meteorites and microscopic particles from the Solar System and beyond. Such material accumulates in the regolith and may remain there for billions of years.
Scientists suggest that after the demise of technological civilizations, fragments of their structures, spacecraft or other artificial materials could end up in interstellar space. Under this hypothesis, they could get there as a result of the destruction of large structures or powerful asteroid impacts on inhabited exoplanets. According to the authors' model, stellar wind could eject such particles beyond their systems.
What volume of samples is needed
According to the team's computer models, particles up to 3 micrometers in size can leave star systems and travel through interstellar space for up to a billion years. The researchers estimated how much of such material could potentially reach the Solar System and fall onto the Moon.
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The authors believe that searching for at least one possible technological fragment may require about 1 cubic meter of lunar regolith. They propose studying the material using microscopy, methods for analyzing industrial materials, and image-processing systems employing artificial intelligence.
Technosignatures have not yet been found in the lunar samples studied. At the same time, the authors note that previous studies were not focused on searching for such microparticles, and the available samples may have been too small. In their view, even the absence of a result in the proposed volume of regolith would not conclusively disprove the hypothesis, since the model parameters may require adjustment.
The work was uploaded to the arXiv preprint server and submitted to the International Journal of Astrobiology. Potentially, new samples of lunar regolith could be collected by future missions of China's Chang'e program and NASA's Artemis program, although the expected volumes will be smaller than that proposed in the study.
