Moon Shrinking: Scientists Warn of New Earthquake Risks
Scientists have revealed that the Moon remains tectonically active and continues to shrink. This condition has the potential to trigger new seismic activity or moonquakes in the future.
This finding is based on the identification of thousands of small geological structures called small mare ridges (SMR) in the maria region, which are the dark plains on the Moon’s surface.
By identifying how these ridges were formed, researchers have also uncovered a new potential source of moonquakes that could affect future mission landing sites.
The researchers found that the structures are geologically young, with ages ranging from 50 to 310 million years, and are widespread.
Like the Earth, the Moon also experiences tectonic activity. However, the mechanism is different. If the Earth’s crust is divided into plates that move and trigger the formation of mountains and volcanoes, the Moon’s crust is not divided into a plate system.
However, internal pressure still forms various characteristic landscapes. One of the structures that has been known is lobate scarps, which are ridges formed by crustal compression.
In 2010, researcher Tom Watters from the Smithsonian Institution found that the Moon is slowly shrinking, and this process triggers the formation of lobate scarps on the lunar highlands.
However, recent research shows that lobate scarps are not the only evidence of this shrinkage. The SMRs found in the maria region are apparently formed by the same compressive forces.
“Since the Apollo era, we have known about the many lobate scarps across the lunar highlands, but this is the first time that scientists have widely documented the existence of similar features across the lunar mare region,” said Cole Nypaver from the Smithsonian Institution, quoted from SCINews, Thursday (26/2/2026).
He added, “This research helps us gain a more complete global perspective on the Moon’s recent tectonics, which will lead to a greater understanding of the Moon’s interior as well as its thermal and seismic history, and the potential for future moonquakes.”
In the study, the researchers compiled the first catalog of SMRs on the near side of the Moon and found 1,114 new segments, bringing the total number of identified structures to 2,634.
The average age of the SMRs is about 124 million years, almost the same as the lobate scarps, which are about 105 million years old.
These findings reinforce the evidence that the Moon is still geologically active and continues to contract.
“Our discovery of young, small ridges in the mare region, as well as the findings about their cause, complement the global picture of a dynamic and continuously shrinking Moon,” said Watters.
The results of this research were published in the journal Planetary Science Journal and are considered important for understanding the risks of future moonquakes.