A discarded stage of Elon Musk‘s SpaceX rocket, Falcon 9, has reportedly crashed into the Moon at nearly 5,400 mph, which is more than 7 times the speed of sound. Scientists believe that it may have left behind a brand-new crater near the Einstein Crater on the Moon’s north side. NASA has confirmed that the collision posed no threat to Earth.
The high-speed SpaceX rocket impact struck near Einstein Crater after drifting through space for months
According to the BBC and New Scientist, the upper stage of the company’s 230 ft. tall rocket, Falcon 9, is believed to have struck the lunar surface on Wednesday, Aug. 5, near the Moon’s Einstein Crater. The impact might have occurred around 2:35 a.m. ET, CBS News reported.
Experts had been tracking the rocket stage for days before the collision. They predicted it would slam into the Moon at more than seven times the speed of sound. This would potentially kick up enough dust to be visible from Earth. Since the Moon has no atmosphere, the rocket was expected to hit the surface intact instead of burning up on its way down.
Although scientists have not released images of the impact yet, they believe the collision occurred as expected. Libby Jackson, head of the Science Museum in London, told Sky News that they are expecting to receive satellite images “in a few days”. He also said there’s “no reason” to believe the impact did not happen. Meanwhile, a telescope operator in Chile told the BBC that changes in light were detected around the predicted time of the collision.
Benjamin Fernando, a postdoctoral researcher at Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico, also shared his thoughts. Speaking to ABC News, he said the impact would likely “create a flash of light.” He also said it would produce a “plume of ejecta — dust, regolith, other stuff mixed into it.”
The rocket stage dates back to a January 2025 mission by Elon Musk-owned SpaceX that launched a lunar lander toward the Moon. After completing its mission, the discarded stage remained in orbit around Earth. It took about 26 days to complete one orbit without falling back into the atmosphere. According to SpaceX, the reusable Falcon 9 rocket can carry around 50,000 pounds of cargo into orbit. It has completed hundreds of missions from launch sites in California and Florida since 2010.
SHARE IN COMMENTS – WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT SPACEX’S ROCKET STAGE CRASHING INTO THE MOON?
