Is this the perfect spot for a lunar colony? Japan's space agency uncovers a 30 mile-long cavern on the moon that could house astronauts and protect them from deadly radiation

  • Radar data taken from Japan's Selene spacecraft revealed the huge structure
  • Scans revealed it is 31 miles (50 km) long and 330 feet (100 metre) wide
  • Experts believe it is a lava tube created by volcanic 3.5 billion years ago
  • Previous research suggested lave tubes as habitats for future space dwellers

A huge moon cave that could one day shelter astronauts from dangerous radiation and wild temperature swings has been discovered.

Data taken from Japan's Selene lunar orbiter has confirmed the existence of the 31 mile (50 km) long and 330 foot (100 metre) wide cavern.

Experts from the country's space agency believe it is a lava tube created by volcanic activity about 3.5 billion years ago.

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A huge moon cave (pictured) that could one day shelter astronauts has been discovered. Data taken from Japan's Selene lunar orbiter has confirmed the existence of the 31 mile (50 km) long and 330 foot (100 metre) wide cavern

A huge moon cave (pictured) that could one day shelter astronauts has been discovered. Data taken from Japan's Selene lunar orbiter has confirmed the existence of the 31 mile (50 km) long and 330 foot (100 metre) wide cavern

HOW DO LAVA TUBES FORM? 

Lava tubes can form in two ways.

'Overcrusted' tubes form when thinner lava flows fairly close to the surface, developing a hard crust that thickens to create a roof above the moving lava stream. 

When the eruptions end, the channel created by the lava is drained leaving a tunnel a few metres beneath the surface. 

'Inflated' tubes are complex and deep structures that form when lava is injected into existing fissures between layers of rock or cavities from previous flows. 

The lava expands and leaves a huge network of connected galleries as it forces its way to the surface.

This second type of tube would provide the best conditions for any future lunar or Martian colonies. 

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Scientists at Japan's space agency Jaxa, along with US colleagues, discovered the underground tunnel located under an area called the Marius Hills.

A base built in such a space would help protect astronauts from the conditions they would be exposed to on the moon's surface.

Previous research identified the potential for the underground networks of tubes, which can stretch up to 40 miles (65 km), as habitats for future space dwellers. 

The full findings of the Japanese team were published this week in the magazine Geophysical Research Letters

Speaking to AFP Junichi Haruyama, a researcher at the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, said: 'We've known about these locations that were thought to be lava tubes.

'But their existence has not been confirmed until now.

'We haven't actually seen the inside of the cave itself so there are high hopes that exploring it will offer more details.'

Lava tubes are found in many volcanic areas on Earth, including Lanzarote, Hawaii, Iceland, North Queensland in Australia, Sicily and the Galapagos islands.

Researchers from the European Space Agency have been exploring these formations to compare lava tube locations here on Earth with those on the moon and Mars.

They hope this will allow astronauts to prepare for the conditions they will find when they return to the moon. 

The Jaxa announcement comes after Japan in June revealed ambitious plans to put an astronaut on the Moon around 2030.

That was the first time the agency had said it aimed to send an astronaut beyond the International Space Station.

The idea is to first join a Nasa-led mission in 2025 to build a space station in the moon's orbit, as part of a longer-term effort by Nasa to reach Mars.

The US also announced the country is committed to send astronauts to the moon.

 Experts from Jaxa, the country's space agency, believe the cavern is a lava tube created by volcanic activity about 3.5 billion years ago.

 Experts from Jaxa, the country's space agency, believe the cavern is a lava tube created by volcanic activity about 3.5 billion years ago.

Previous research identified the potential for the underground networks of tubes, which can stretch up to 40 miles (65 km), as habitats for future space dwellers. This image shows Philadelphia inside an approximation of a lunar lava tube

Previous research identified the potential for the underground networks of tubes, which can stretch up to 40 miles (65 km), as habitats for future space dwellers. This image shows Philadelphia inside an approximation of a lunar lava tube

Researchers from the European Space Agency have been exploring these formations to compare lava tube locations here on Earth with those on the moon and Mars. They hope this will allow astronauts to prepare for the conditions they will find when they return to the moon

Researchers from the European Space Agency have been exploring these formations to compare lava tube locations here on Earth with those on the moon and Mars. They hope this will allow astronauts to prepare for the conditions they will find when they return to the moon

'We will return American astronauts to the moon, not only to leave behind footprints and flags, but to build the foundations we need to send Americans to Mars and beyond,' US Vice President Mike Pence said this month.

China and India are also developing their space programmes.

In November, China's Shenzhou-11 spacecraft returned to Earth, bringing home two astronauts from the rising power's longest-ever orbital mission.

Beijing has also unveiled illustrations of a Mars probe and rover it aims to send to the Red Planet at the end of the decade.

Nasa and other global space agencies are working hard on sending astronauts to Mars by the 2030s. 

HUMANS BORN ON THE MOON 'IN A FEW DECADES'

Children will be born on the moon 'in a few decades', with whole families joining Europe's lunar colony by 2050, a top space scientist has claimed.

Professor Bernard Foing, ambassador of the European Space Agency-driven 'Moon Village' scheme, made the comments at a conference last week.

He said that by 2030, there could be an initial lunar settlement of six to 10 pioneers - scientists, technicians and engineers - which could grow to 100 by 2040.

'In 2050, you could have a thousand and then... naturally you could envisage to have family' joining crews there, he told AFP on Friday, September 22. 

Speaking at this year's European Planetary Science Congress in Riga, Latvia, Professor Foing explained how humanity's moon colonies could quickly expand.

Children will be born on the moon 'in a few decades', with whole families joining Europe's lunar colony by 2050, a top space scientist has claimed. Professor Bernard Foing, ambassador of the Esa-driven 'Moon Village' scheme (concept art pictured), made the comments this week

Children will be born on the moon 'in a few decades', with whole families joining Europe's lunar colony by 2050, a top space scientist has claimed. Professor Bernard Foing, ambassador of the Esa-driven 'Moon Village' scheme (concept art pictured), made the comments this week

He likened human expansion on the moon to the growth of the railways, when villages grew around train stations, followed by businesses.

Potential moon resources include basalt, a volcanic rock that could be used as a raw material for 3D-printing satellites.

These could be deployed from the moon at a fraction of the cost of a launch from high-gravity Earth.

The moon also houses helium-3, a rare isotope on our planet, that could theoretically be used to generate cleaner, safer nuclear energy for Earth.

One of the main targets for moon colonies is water, locked up in ice on the moon's poles.

Water can be separated into hydrogen and oxygen, two gases which explode when mixed - providing rocket fuel.

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