The Crater That Has Never Seen the Sun
At the Moon's south pole is a deep crater whose floor has been in darkness for billions of years, among the coldest places in the Solar System.
What was reported
Shackleton crater is about 21 kilometres across and over 4 kilometres deep, almost exactly on the Moon's south pole. Because the Moon's axis is barely tilted, sunlight only ever skims its rim, and the floor has stayed in permanent shadow.
Temperatures down there are thought to stay below about minus 200°C. Meanwhile, parts of its rim are lit almost all the time, so-called peaks of eternal light.
Explanations offered
Craters like this can trap ice brought by comets and asteroids over billions of years. Several missions have found signs of ice in the permanently shadowed craters near the poles, which is why the region is the target for future crewed landings.
- When
- Mapped in the 2000s
- Where
- Shackleton crater, south pole of the Moon
- Witnesses
- Orbiting spacecraft from the US, Japan and India
- Status
- Explained
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.