- Certain microbes from Earth may survive in shaded areas of the Moon's South Pole
- NASA's study highlights risks of contamination during lunar exploration and research
- Microbes can escape astronauts' suits, complicating searches for lunar biochemical signs
The Moon may look like a lifeless and hostile world, but some tiny visitors from Earth could possibly survive there. NASA scientists have found that certain microbes carried into space by human explorers may remain alive in shaded parts of the Moon's South Pole, reported NASA.
Published on August 19, 2026, in Science Advances, the findings show the need to better understand how microbes can persist in extreme lunar environments. As humans work towards building a permanent presence on the Moon, scientists may find it difficult to separate ancient lunar chemistry from contamination brought by astronauts. The concern could also extend beyond the Moon to Mars.
Prabal Saxena, who led this research at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, stated that humans are explorers by nature and carry their voices, memories, and microorganisms with them wherever they go.
According to him, while this may be a cause for concern for some scientists, it can also be viewed as an opportunity for a useful scientific experiment.
It is virtually certain that microorganisms will travel into space alongside humans. On average, a patch of skin the size of a pencil eraser hosts a million bacteria. These bacteria can escape from spacesuits and space habitats. Researchers fear that such contamination could interfere with the search for ancient geological or biochemical signatures. However, scientists believe the Moon could also serve as a natural laboratory to test the survival capabilities of microorganisms under real-world conditions.
Scientists emphasise the importance of understanding what kind of contaminants humans might introduce to the lunar surface before commencing scientific studies there. Andrew Needham, a co-author from NASA Goddard and an Artemis contamination control scientist for lunar samples, stated that it is crucial to understand the environment as it exists prior to human arrival. He noted that in future searches for signs of non-Earth life on Mars, it will be essential to ensure that any detected signals did not originate from Earth.
The research also included a fungus named Aspergillus niger. This fungus thrives in warm, humid environments, such as household bathrooms and heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems.
Astronauts have encountered it inside the International Space Station, and experiments have shown that it can survive outside the station as well. It was selected as one of the five microorganisms for the study due to its remarkable ability to survive in the spaceflight environment.
Aaron Regberg, a geomicrobiologist at NASA's Johnson Space Center and co-author of the research paper, stated that he had expected these microorganisms to perish from desiccation.
He noted that these species are generally not classified as organisms capable of withstanding extremely harsh conditions, such as the vacuum of space.
Researchers tested the microorganisms by simulating conditions in three regions near the Moon's south pole: Nobile Rim, Connecting Ridge, and de Gerlache Rim.
Researchers indicated that some microorganisms could survive in a dormant state near the Moon's south pole, potentially complicating future scientific studies. However, there is currently no evidence that the essential conditions required for these microorganisms to grow and reproduce exist on the Moon.
