A discarded SpaceX rocket stage plowed into the moon on Wednesday after drifting off course for more than a year, space tracking experts confirmed, in the latest example of orbital debris reaching the lunar surface.
The four-ton upper stage, left over from a Falcon 9 launch that carried a pair of lunar landers, struck the moon at roughly 5,400 mph (8,700 kph). While the collision had not been officially verified, observers said the impact was effectively certain.
The projected crash site was a barren, dusty patch near Einstein Crater on the moon’s sunlit western limb, close to the boundary between the near and far sides — a region that is notoriously difficult to observe from Earth.
“There’s no doubt in my mind” that the rocket “is now in teeny, little pieces scattered over the moon near Einstein Crater,” retired astrophysicist Jonathan McDowell told The Associated Press, adding that observations the previous night had shown the stage heading straight for the surface.
The impact underscores a growing concern over lunar litter, a problem many fear could intensify as the United States and China accelerate their competing efforts to return astronauts to the moon.
Stray rocket components have reached the lunar surface before. In 2022, a Chinese rocket unintentionally struck the moon following a lunar mission, and researchers believe many more pieces of hardware collided with the moon in decades past without being detected.
SpaceX’s Julianna Scheiman said the company is working with NASA to prevent future wrecks, stressing that this collision was not deliberate. A combination of solar activity and gravity accidentally placed the spent stage on a trajectory toward the moon.
The episode arrives during a turbulent period for the rocket maker’s finances, with recent months marked by investor unease over the company’s post-IPO performance. The impact coincided with continued scrutiny of the stock, which has faced pressure amid heavy scrutiny of its earnings and renewed selling pressure ahead of key financial disclosures.
Uncontrolled debris on the moon carries practical stakes as space agencies prepare permanent lunar operations. Discarded hardware scattered across the surface complicates site selection for landings and long-term bases, and adds to the broader challenge of tracking objects in cislunar space.
SpaceX and NASA are expected to refine disposal procedures for spent stages to reduce the risk of similar accidental strikes as launch cadence to the moon increases in the years ahead.