Here’s Why Physicists Want to Drill a Five-Kilometer-Deep Hole on the Moon

Digging for Answers Beneath the Surface of the Moon

In 1967 Andrei Sakharov, a Soviet nuclear physicist, first proposed proton decay to question the particle physics model, which suggested that protons were naturally stable and could last forever. But, experiments conducted on Earth failed to find any evidence to prove his point, and decades later Patrick Stengel and his team from the National Institute of Nuclear Physics in Ferrara, Italy, decided to aim higher. They suggested drilling a five-kilometer-deep hole in the Moon to search for signs of ancient protons breaking down into kaons. Here's a look at how they propose to experiment.

Stengel's Drilling Mission

Stengel's theory suggested that drilling deep into the Moon's surface might reveal signs of proton decay through changes in its mineral structure. Their calculations indicated that digging and taking samples from a depth of at least 5 kilometers under the lunar surface would have been necessary. Additionally, drills on Earth could reach even deeper; for instance, the Kola Superdeep Borehole in Russia was more than 12 kilometers deep. Stengel told Bored Panda, "The idea was very speculative. You needed to drill to a depth of 5 kilometers, extract moon rocks, and use advanced microscopy techniques – all of which was very challenging."

Why are They Looking Toward the Moon?

David Waters, Professor of Physics at University College London, opined on Bored Panda , "Fundamentally, the idea was appealing. Instead of using detectors that weighed thousands of tonnes and operated for years, one could examine small mineral samples, perhaps only tens or hundreds of grams, which might have recorded particle interactions over hundreds of millions of years." Knewz.com noted that this experiment involved around 40 universities and research institutes globally, all working towards solving the mysteries of the universe and matter by studying neutrinos.

Mysteries Around Proton Stability

Proton decay was a hypothetical concept suggesting that protons might have decayed into smaller subatomic particles, according to Universe Today . This idea was first proposed by Dr. Andrei Sakharov from the Soviet Union but there wasn't concrete evidence at that time to confirm whether protons decayed on their own. Discovering proton decay could have significantly advanced our understanding of the universe, as it would have indicated that everything in the universe was gradually breaking down. Additionally, it could have provided insights into the asymmetry between matter and antimatter in the vast universe.

Standard Model Governing Proton Behavior

The Standard Model of particle physics was a framework designed to explain the nature and the forces operating between the fundamental particles of the universe, according to Smartphone Magazine . It described 12 fundamental particles, which were classified into quarks and leptons. According to the model, three fundamental forces that governed the interactions of these particles were electromagnetic forces, which acted between charged particles; weak nuclear forces, which were responsible for radioactive decay; and strong nuclear forces, which held particles together inside neutrons and protons. However, the model did not explain dark matter, which made up most of the known universe.