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3 clusters · 51 sources · 8 days · First seen · Last updated

Categories: TECHNOLOGY

Falcon 9 upper‑stage Moon impact

Entities: Moon · Falcon 9 · Einstein crater · SpaceX · Starship

Overview

NASA will use the unused 4.9‑ton, 12‑metre Falcon 9 upper stage launched in January 2025 as a controlled impact experiment. The stage is slated to strike the lunar far side near the visible‑edge Einstein crater on 5 August 2026 at 06:34 UTC (03:34 BRT). Impact speed is about 8,700 km/h (2.4 km s⁻¹), releasing roughly 11 gigajoules and forming a crater roughly 17 metres across, with some estimates up to 20‑30 metres. NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter and South Korea’s Pathfinder Lunar Orbiter will image the site before and after the collision. Amateur observers, aided by software from Bill Gray, plan to record the brief flash and possible ejecta plume, which may be visible from night‑side regions of the United States. The event is intended to improve understanding of artificial debris impacts and to validate lunar impact‑model predictions. Separate from this, SpaceX successfully completed a Starship integrated flight on 24 July 2026; the Falcon 9 stage remains on schedule for the lunar impact, confirming no risk to lunar or Earth missions.

Timeline

  1. about 5 hours ago

    [TECHNOLOGY] 3 sources
    SpaceX succeeds with Starship test flight as its Falcon 9 stage set to hit Moon in 2026

    SpaceX's Starship test flight succeeded, and its Falcon 9 upper stage will deliberately impact the Moon on Aug 5 2026.

  2. 4 days ago

    [TECHNOLOGY] 6 sources
    SpaceX Falcon 9 upper stage to impact Moon near Einstein crater on Aug 5

    On 5 Aug 2026, SpaceX’s Falcon 9 upper stage will hit the Moon near Einstein crater, producing a flash and debris plume observable from the Americas.

  3. 7 days ago

    [TECHNOLOGY] 42 sources
    Falcon 9 upper stage set to impact Moon in August 2026

    SpaceX’s Falcon 9 upper stage will strike the Moon on 5 Aug 2026, forming a 20‑30 m crater near Einstein crater; NASA will observe the impact for scientific study.

Sources

aerospacecue.it · agron.com.br · allgaeuer-anzeigeblatt.de · atvlive.tv · bild.de · brasilemfolhas.com.br · bug.hr · cash.ch · correiodecarajas.com.br · diepresse.com · dorstenerzeitung.de · finanzen.at · g7.hu · gigaherz.ch · halternerzeitung.de · hellwegeranzeiger.de · infoshqip.com · it-boltwise.de · jjfilleul.blog.lemonde.fr · koinoniajournal.com · kurierverlag.de · leinetal24.de · media.inaf.it · mobil.krone.at · muensterlandzeitung.de · multicians.org · nafsiyah.com · nos.blogosfera.uol.com.br · onetz.de · op-online.de · osul.com.br · poa24horas.com.br · presse-citron.net · pro.hwupgrade.it · recklinghaeuser-zeitung.de · rocknroll.pt · ruhrnachrichten.de · saarbruecker-zeitung.de · stimberg-zeitung.de · stnicholasorthodoxchurch.org · technologyreview.de · tecnologia.libero.it · telegrafi.com · tubarco.news · vezess.hu · volksfreund.de · waltroper-zeitung.de · westfalenpost.de