SpaceX Falcon 9 booster set to impact Moon at 5,400 mph, creating 16-foot crater

An 8,800-pound Falcon 9 booster that separated from a launch on Jan. 15, 2025, is on a trajectory that will bring it into the Moon’s surface at roughly 5,400 mph around 2:35 a.m. Eastern time on Wednesday. The 45-foot-long, 12-foot-wide stage, which remained in orbit after delivering two lunar landers, was placed on a lunar collision path due to a combination of solar activity and gravitational forces, SpaceX’s director of NASA Science and Dragon Programs Julianna Scheiman said.

The impact is expected to create a crater 65 to 100 feet in diameter and about 16 feet deep, releasing energy comparable to 2.8 tons of TNT, according to a study by nearly two dozen scientists. Because the collision will occur on the illuminated side of the Moon, the flash may be difficult to detect even with large telescopes.

NASA confirmed that the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter will photograph the site before and after the impact, though images may not be released for one to two weeks. Scheiman added, "As a scientist, I also am very excited to see the observation."

Planetary scientist Carl Schmidt of Boston University said the event could provide data on subsurface water ice, noting that many observers will likely point telescopes at the impact site. The incident follows a small number of previous artificial lunar impacts, including a 2009 NASA mission that confirmed water ice in a permanently shadowed crater.