By 
December 9th, 2023
Apollo 11 footprint on the Moon.
Image credit: NASA
“That’s one small step”… but anthropologists and geologists at the University of Kansas say it’s time to recognize that humans have left their environmental footprint on the Moon, declaring it the “Lunar Anthropocene.”
The idea is much the same as the discussion of the Anthropocene on Earth, that is the exploration of how much humans have impacted our planet, states Justin Holcomb, a postdoctoral researcher with the Kansas Geological Survey (KGS) at KU.
“The consensus is on Earth the Anthropocene began at some point in the past, whether hundreds of thousands of years ago or in the 1950s. Similarly, on the Moon, we argue the Lunar Anthropocene already has commenced,” Holcomb points out in a university press statement.
Examples of archaeological artifacts and features on the Moon. a) Crater formed by impact of USA’s Ranger 6 lunar probe in 1964; b) USA’s Apollo 13 Saturn IVB upper stage impact site from 1970; c) Israel’s Beresheet Moon lander crash site from attempted soft landing in 2019; d) China’s Chang’e 4 lunar lander, launched in 2018: e) Photograph and partial footprint left behind by astronaut Charles Duke during USA’s Apollo 16 mission in 1972; f) USA’s Apollo 16 Lunar Surface Magnetometer; g) USA’s NASA Surveyor 3 probe that landed in 1967 and footprints from Apollo 12 which occurred over three years later, resulting in the recovery of some lunar probe components; h) Tracks of Russia’s Lunokhod 2 rover deployed during the 1973 Luna 21 mission.
Image credit: Justin Holcomb, et al.
Lunar halo
Holcomb collaborated on the idea, published as a comment within the journal Nature Geoscience, co-written by Rolfe Mandel, University Distinguished Professor of Anthropology and senior scientist with KGS, and Karl Wegmann, associate professor of marine, earth and atmospheric sciences at North Carolina State University.
“We want to prevent massive damage or a delay of its recognition until we can measure a significant lunar halo caused by human activities, which would be too late,” Holcomb adds.
Holcomb said he hopes the Lunar Anthropocene concept might help dispel the myth that the Moon is an unchanging environment, barely impacted by humanity.
Artistic depiction of NASA astronauts at the lunar south pole carrying out early work to establish an Artemis Base Camp.
Image credit: NASA
Space heritage
“In the context of the new space race, the lunar landscape will be entirely different in 50 years,” Holcomb said. “Multiple countries will be present, leading to numerous challenges. Our goal is to dispel the lunar-static myth and emphasize the importance of our impact, not only in the past but ongoing and in the future. We aim to initiate discussions about our impact on the lunar surface before it’s too late.”
The field of “space heritage” would aim to preserve or catalog items such as footprints, rovers, flags…yes, even golf balls, that already dot the lunar topside.
Other evidence for human activity on the Moon includes bags of human excreta, scientific equipment, photographs and religious texts, Holcomb and colleagues write.
The first picture Neil Armstrong took during the Apollo 11 moonwalk shows a jettison bag under Eagle’s descent stage.
Credit: NASA
Humanity’s journey
“Footprints and rover wheel tracks are extensions of the human presence on the Moon and should be considered important cultural features of our species’ dispersal across our Solar System,” their paper explains.
“As archaeologists, we perceive footprints on the Moon as an extension of humanity’s journey out of Africa, a pivotal milestone in our species’ existence,” Holcomb said.
“These imprints are intertwined with the overarching narrative of evolution,” Holcomb continued. “It’s within this framework we seek to capture the interest of not only planetary scientists but also archaeologists and anthropologists who may not typically engage in discussions about planetary science.”
To access the comment – “The case for a lunar anthropocene” published in Nature Geoscience, go to:
Posted in Space News
