Why Do Astronauts Leave Poop on the Moon?

In the vacuum of space, in the orbit of the planets and on the Moon; There are some interesting items. Among them From nail clippers and lens cases to bags of poop. There is everything… Yes, poop.

Moreover this The reason why nearly 100 poop bags are standing there is, It’s not like the astronauts’ toilet comes and just leaves it there. So what then?

Even the first photograph Armstrong took on the Moon included a fecal bag.

Astronauts take their urine and feces with them when they go to the Moon. They then dump this waste on the Moon. In fact, this was the first photograph taken by Neil Armstrong on the Moon. one of the stool bags It was located.

Since the inside of feces and urine bags contain microbial life and viruses, to retrieve these bags left on the Moon and analyze their contents; interplanetary microbial contamination contributes to research.

What is this “interplanetary microbial contamination?”

Microbial contamination research is done as part of the search for life in space. Approximately half of the fecal mass consists of bacteria living in our intestines. Some of more than 1000 types of microbes bacteria that form contains. In short, a whole ecosystem lies in a piece of poop…

Microorganisms found in astronauts’ feces are important for understanding how life in space is affected. To explain in more detail; how resilient life is to the Moon’s environment and whether it could potentially contaminate other objects in the solar system.

However, the Earth’s atmosphere protects us from the harmful effects of UV rays and keeps the temperature at a livable level. The moon cannot provide this protection and the spores on the feces It becomes ineffective within 1 month.

The fact that such a situation occurs in the feces left on the Moon does not mean that life is completely impossible.

In 2020, Japanese researchers discovered dried bacteria on the exterior of the International Space Station (ISS). for 3 years He found that he could survive. Similarly, in 2017, Russian astronauts found bacteria living outside the ISS. Like those on the Moon, they survived temperatures ranging from 121°C to -157°C.

There is also the possibility of a resurgence of some microbes. So after lying dormant on the Moon for decades, some of these microbes, It can be brought back to life under the right conditions. Bacterial spores in the Arctic were revived after being frozen in ice for thousands of years. It may be possible to revive fecal spores on the Moon decades later.

This future of fecal research could take us all the way to Mars.

If microbes can survive for a certain period of time on the Moon, they would have a thin atmosphere, a more hospitable environment, and flowing water. Mars has evidence of water The odds of survival increase.

But if we go to Mars and pollute the planet with our filth and If our microbes love Mars and spread There may be no way to undo this…

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