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This SpaceX rocket is about to slam into the moon at 5,400 mph
USA Today • • science
Key Points:
- The 45-foot upper stage of SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket is expected to crash into the moon's near side on August 5, creating a new crater but posing no threat to Earth.
- The rocket section, used in a January 2025 lunar mission to deliver the Blue Ghost lander, has been orbiting Earth in a highly elliptical orbit and is now on a collision course with the moon.
- Traveling at about 5,400 mph, the impact could form a crater approximately 66 to 98 feet wide and generate a dust plume observable by powerful telescopes on Earth.
- Astronomers, led by Bill Gray who tracked the object, plan to study the crash to analyze the lunar dust plume, though the event will be difficult to observe with amateur telescopes.
- This incident highlights concerns about space debris disposal, though similar lunar impacts have occurred before, including NASA's intentional 2009 crash to study water-ice on the moon.
