A discarded SpaceX rocket is on course to make a collision with the moon on Wednesday with an estimated impact of 54,000 mph, creating a plume of dust and rubble which skygazers are enthusiastic to watch. The impact, expected to be seven times the speed of sound, will pack energy equivalent to three tons of TNT.
The rocket, weighing over 4,500kgs, which launched two moon landers just a year ago will make an impact near Einstein Crater on the moon’s sunlit western limb.
According to space tracking expert Bill Grey, the event will be best visible from eastern portions of the U.S. and Canada and much of South America.
The impact might not be visible and it will produce a dim light that could last only a second; however, the stream of ejected materials could stretch in space and can be visible with telescopes for tens of minutes.
Though, this specific incident and space junk do not cause concern among scientists; however, experts warn to be wary of the more and more items cramming into orbit.
Grey said: “Things are getting crowded up there.”
Los Alamos National Laboratory’s Benjamin Fernando said: “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.”
Experts warn with the increasing quantity of space junk, some collisions could become common, posing a threat to life on Earth.
The collision will mark the second such incident in the last four years when a rocket unintentionally struck the moon’s surface. In 2022, a Chinese rocket segment struck the Moon’s far side.
2026-08-01 22:21:00
