A discarded SpaceX rocket is on a high-speed collision course with the moon

A discarded SpaceX rocket is on a high-speed collision course with the moon, set to strike the lunar surface on Wednesday, January 15, 2025. The rocket’s upper stage, which launched two private lunar landers over a year earlier, will unintentionally slam into the moon at a speed of approximately 5,400 miles per hour, seven times the speed of sound, near Einstein Crater on the moon’s sunlit western limb. The impact is expected to create a crater and send up a plume of dust and rubble that scientists and amateur observers will monitor closely. The collision marks the second time a defunct rocket has struck the moon accidentally. In 2022, a segment of a Chinese rocket created two craters on the lunar far side. This latest incident underscores the increasing challenge of managing space debris as more missions launch toward the moon. The SpaceX rocket, which measured roughly 40 feet in length and weighed about 10,000 pounds, was originally designed to carry two private landers: Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost and Japan-based ispace’s lander. While Blue Ghost successfully touched down on the moon, the ispace lander failed during descent. The impact will occur in the early morning hours, making it visible to observers in the eastern parts of the United States and Canada, as well as much of South America. However, the actual flash of the impact, lasting less than a second, is likely too faint to be seen with the naked eye. Instead, the ejected material from the crash site may remain visible to telescopes for tens of minutes. Scientists anticipate a crater approximately 90 feet wide and 16 feet deep, which, while too small to be observed from Earth, will be captured by orbiting satellites. NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter and South Korea’s Danuri lunar orbiter will take images both before and after the impact. Danuri, which will pass within a mile or two of the rocket shortly before the collision, is expected to capture detailed data on the event. These observations will help researchers understand the effects of such collisions on the lunar surface and assess potential hazards for future missions. The incident highlights the growing concern over uncontrolled space debris. As commercial and governmental agencies race to establish a presence on the moon, the risk of accidental collisions increases. The United States and China are both working toward landing astronauts on the moon in the coming years, with companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin competing to supply landers for NASA’s Artemis program. The current situation serves as a cautionary tale about the importance of better debris monitoring and orbital management. Experts like space tracking specialist Bill Gray emphasize that while this particular collision poses no immediate danger, it reflects broader challenges. “Things are getting crowded up there,” Gray noted, referring to the increasing number of objects in lunar orbit. He plans to observe the aftermath from New Brunswick, Canada. Similarly, Benjamin Fernando of the Los Alamos National Laboratory stressed the value of studying such events to improve safety for future lunar explorers. “Part of the reason for our interest in this event is to figure out how much of a hazard debris impacts pose to future astronauts,” he explained. Retired astrophysicist Jonathan McDowell echoed these concerns, stating that while the current impact will not be problematic, long-term lunar bases would face greater risks if similar incidents occur. “We need not to leave rocket stages in chaotic orbits of this kind,” he wrote in an email. As humanity moves closer to establishing a sustained presence on the moon, the lessons learned from this collision will become increasingly vital.