NASA satellite captures 60-foot crater from SpaceX rocket impact on Moon

A Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) image released Tuesday shows a 60-foot-wide crater on the Moon caused by the impact of a SpaceX Falcon 9 upper stage on Aug. 5. The rocket’s first stage returned to Earth after launching two commercial lunar landers on Jan. 15, 2025, while the upper stage was later discarded and, due to orbital dynamics, collided with the Moon.

The impact was first detected by the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope in Chile, and South Korea’s Danuri lunar orbiter transmitted images shortly after the event. NASA collaborated with the Korea Aerospace Administration, using Danuri’s preliminary data to direct LRO’s narrow-angle camera toward the site. Engineers adjusted LRO’s orientation so its cameras could capture the crater each time the spacecraft passed about 60 miles above the Moon, moving at roughly one mile per second.

It took six days for LRO’s orbit to align with the impact location, after which additional processing produced the clear images. NASA noted that precise timing was required, as a delay of ten seconds could shift the crater out of the camera’s field of view by up to ten miles.

NASA lunar scientist Kelsey Young said the collision does not threaten Earth or the lunar surface and described the disposal of hardware in low lunar orbit as a standard, safe practice. Researchers plan to use observations of the impact to improve understanding of the Moon’s surface and to inform protection strategies for future astronauts and infrastructure.