Hopefully Lucky 13 spots suggested, all on the south pole near water ice
The next US astronauts to set foot on the Moon will find themselves on the summit of a mountain range or the ridge of a crater near the lunar south pole.
NASA has narrowed down the potential landing site to 13 possible regions, all within six degrees of latitude of the south pole. Sunlight fails to reach most of these areas, leaving these spots cold and dark. Crucially, their craters appear to hold hydrogen, water ice, and other pristine volatiles.
The 13 candidate landing sites, mapped in the image below, are geologically diverse. The Malapert Massif, for example, features ranges of mountains near an impact crater, whilst Haworth is a pentagon-shaped crater. NASA may also choose to land on the rims of several other craters of different sizes like Amundsen, measuring over 103 kilometers across, or Haworth, which is about half as wide.
«Selecting these regions means we are one giant leap closer to returning humans to the Moon for the first time since Apollo,» said Mark Kirasich, deputy associate administrator for NASA’s Artemis Campaign Development Division. «When we do, it will be unlike any mission that’s come before as astronauts venture into dark areas previously unexplored by humans and lay the groundwork for future long-term stays.
