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Not according to NASA’s current Moon Base plans. NASA has reported radar evidence of a cave beneath a lunar pit and is studying ways to detect underground voids. But its Moon Base materials describe a phased effort to establish a sustained human presence near the lunar South Pole; they do not identify a cave as the chosen base site or say cave searches are required. The cave findings and base plans are related parts of lunar exploration, not a confirmed single project.
Has NASA found a cave on the Moon?
NASA reported evidence of a cave extending more than 200 feet (about 61 meters) from the base of a pit in Mare Tranquillitatis. The result came from scientists’ reanalysis of 2010 radar data collected by Mini-RF, an instrument aboard the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO). The pit is about 230 miles northeast of the Apollo 11 landing site. NASA says the cave’s full extent is unknown; it could extend much farther, potentially for miles, but that possibility is not a measured length. NASA’s 2024 account of the radar finding explains the evidence and its limits.
The pit itself was identified earlier: NASA says a pit was confirmed in 2009 using images from Japan’s Kaguya orbiter. A pit is an opening or depression, however, and does not by itself prove a cave continues underground. NASA’s 2014 account reported more than 200 lunar pits, a historical count of pits—not confirmed caves. NASA’s account of lunar pits describes the distinction.
How might a lunar cave form?
One proposed explanation is that lava once flowed beneath a hardened crust, leaving a hollow tube behind. If a section of its roof later collapsed, it could expose a pit or skylight. This is a possible formation mechanism, not proof that every lunar pit opens into a cave. NASA’s discussion of lunar pits presents the idea as a hypothesis.
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Why could caves interest astronauts?
A deep overhang or cave could provide shelter from direct sunlight and may reduce exposure to radiation and micrometeorites. Subsurface environments may also be more thermally stable than the exposed lunar surface. These are potential advantages, not evidence that a cave has been made safe or ready for people.
In a 2022 account, NASA reported modeled temperatures around 63°F (17°C) in permanently shadowed reaches of one pit. NASA said a cave extending from the pit could share that temperature only under certain conditions; the figure is not a measured temperature for every cave or a guarantee of a habitable environment. NASA’s temperature analysis describes the model and qualification.
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In 2014, LRO researcher Tyler Wagner suggested that a habitat set well back beneath an overhang could be a safer location for astronauts. His assessment listed protection from radiation, micrometeorites, dust, and sharp day-night temperature changes as potential benefits. That was a researcher’s assessment of a possible habitat, not a verified guarantee that a lunar pit provides “no radiation” or that NASA has decided to build there. NASA’s 2014 report includes his comments.
How is NASA studying ways to detect underground voids?
NASA’s September 2025 report described Earth-based field experiments near Flagstaff, Arizona, and Tulelake, California. Researchers struck a metal plate with a 10-pound (4.5-kilogram) sledgehammer to generate seismic signals, then measured reflections above known caves and lava tubes. In the reported method, blows were spaced 3.3 feet (1 meter) apart along a 420-foot (125-meter) line.
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The experiments demonstrated a hand-operated proof of principle in those Earth settings. NASA discussed possible future mechanical sources of impacts, but the report did not describe a lunar deployment. It therefore shows a way researchers tested for subsurface voids on Earth—not that NASA has already used this method to search the Moon. NASA’s 2025 account of the field tests gives the method and setting.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What does NASA’s Moon Base plan say?
NASA’s current Moon Base overview describes a phased program intended to support an enduring human presence near the lunar South Pole. Its phases page discusses robotic missions, technology demonstrations, mobility, science payloads, and infrastructure. Neither page identifies a cave as the selected base site or says cave detection is a prerequisite for the program. Because NASA plans can change, consult the agency’s current pages for the latest program description: NASA Moon Base overview and NASA Moon Base phases.
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NASA researchers have described lunar caves as a possible future shelter. For example, David Paige, a co-author and lead of the Diviner Lunar Radiometer Experiment aboard LRO, said, “Humans evolved living in caves, and to caves we might return when we live on the Moon.” That expresses a researcher’s perspective, not a NASA commitment to construct a cave habitat. NASA’s 2022 report attributes the comment to Paige.
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What remains unknown?
- Full size: NASA’s reported radar evidence extends more than 200 feet from the pit, but the cave’s full length and dimensions have not been established.
- Access: The available account does not establish whether astronauts or equipment could safely enter, travel through, or use the cave.
- Habitability: Potential temperature stability and shielding do not establish that a cave has been surveyed or prepared as a human habitat.
- Site selection: NASA’s cited Moon Base pages do not rank lunar caves or name one as a base location.
- Detection maturity: The 2025 seismic method was demonstrated in Earth field settings; the account does not report a lunar test.
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