When Armstrong and Aldrin returned from the Moon , they were decontaminated andlocked in quarantine , lest they institute back infectious diseases . Soon enough , however , it was confirm the Moon was utterly hostile to life story . But consort to a newly publish possibility , this was not always the case . The Moon has receive two period of time where it might have been possible for primitive life to live on there , either having evolve topically or been transported from the Earth .
Professor Dirk Schulze - Makuchof Washington State University noted the Moon is think to have had major volcanic periods 4 billion and 3.5 billion year ago .
It is thought there was plentitude of weewee vapour among the petrol released by these volcanoes , and Schulze - Makuch think this would have fallen as rainwater to create lake and ponds . Today , with efficaciously no lunar atmosphere , piddle ca n’t abide smooth on the Moon ’s open – it would become to gas or ice almost instantly . However , the bearing of all these volcanic gasses meant things were different then .
Writing inAstrobiology , Schulze - Makuch fence this would have createdsufficient atmospherical pressureto keep these lakes liquid , perhaps for millions of long time .
" If liquid water and a meaning atmosphere were present on the early Moon for foresighted periods of time , we think the lunar surface would have been at least transiently habitable , " Schulze - Makuch say in astatement .
The Moon was then much closer to Earth , had a protectivemagnetosphere , and rotate cursorily enough to quash the blistering days and swelter night it has today .
Schulze - Makuch does n’t rule out the possibleness of life evolving on the Moon during this pie-eyed period , but the circumstances would have been less favorable than on Earth . However , we get laid the Earth was still experiencing numerous impingement at the time from expectant asteroid , which would have blasted rocks into quad , sometimes carry lifespan .
“ Some of the debris should have terminate up on the Moon , ” Schulze - Makuch tell IFLScience . “ A minor but substantial proportion . ”
We have it away little about the lunar atmosphere at the time , but it was belike similar enough to Earth ’s ambience then as to not envenom arrival from Earth , raising the possibility they would have brandish there for a meter .
Although any bug that manage to live on the Moon during this period would be well and truly stagnant by now , Schulze - Makuch debate it is possible they could have left detectible residues behind . To prove this , however , we are last to call for to go back to the Moon , at least with robots , since none of the Apollo missionary work collected rocks from the relevant eras .
The possibility will no doubt face much skepticism , but Schulze - Makuch is no crank , being an expert on living in dry position , including theAtacama Desert .
