美国国家航空航天局科学家最新研究发现，宇航员携带的地球微生物有可能在月球南极附近的寒冷阴影区域存活，这将对未来搜寻月球原始化学信号及火星生命迹象造成污染干扰1。该研究由美国国家航空航天局戈达德太空飞行中心行星科学家普拉巴尔·萨克塞纳领导，论文合著者包括该中心的阿尔忒弥斯月球样本污染控制科学家安德鲁·尼达姆，相关成果已于2026年8月19日发表在《科学进展》期刊上1。
研究团队通过建模分析了多种微生物在月球南极不同地形下的耐受能力，模拟地点包括诺比尔边缘、连接脊和德热拉什边缘三个区域1。考察对象涵盖五种微生物：黑曲霉、枯草芽孢杆菌、金黄色葡萄球菌、耐辐射奇异球菌以及多种镰刀菌1。结果显示，部分微生物的存活避难所可小至一个脚印大小1。其中，黑曲霉对紫外线辐射的耐受性最强，甚至可能在部分暴露于阳光的区域存活1。研究明确将“存活”定义为微生物至少维持一个地球日的生命，而非具备生长或繁殖能力1。
针对潜在的污染问题，美国国家航空航天局目前可通过将机器人航天器加热至400华氏度以上来进行生物去污，但该方法并不适用于载人航天任务1。
NASA scientists have found that Earth microbes carried by astronauts could potentially survive in the cold, shadowed regions near the lunar south pole, which could contaminate and interfere with future searches for the Moon's original chemical signals and signs of life on Mars 1. The research, led by Prabal Saxena, a planetary scientist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, was published in the journal Science Advances on August 19, 2026 1.
Through modeling, the study examined the tolerance of five microorganisms—Aspergillus niger, Bacillus subtilis, Staphylococcus aureus, Deinococcus radiodurans, and multiple Fusarium species—across three specific locations at the lunar south pole: Nobile Rim, Connecting Ridge, and De Gerlache Rim 1. The researchers defined survival as the microbes remaining alive for at least one Earth day, rather than being able to grow or reproduce, and found that some microbial survival refuges could be as small as a single footprint 1. Notably, Aspergillus niger demonstrated the highest tolerance to ultraviolet radiation, suggesting it might even survive in areas partially exposed to sunlight 1.
To mitigate such contamination risks, NASA can perform biological decontamination on robotic spacecraft by heating them to over 400 degrees Fahrenheit, although this method is not applicable to crewed missions 1. Andrew Needham, a co-author of the paper, serves as the Artemis lunar sample contamination control scientist at NASA's Goddard Center 1.
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