All articles tagged with #einstein crater
Astronomer Bill Gray predicts the Falcon 9 upper stage from SpaceX's January 15, 2025 Moon mission will crash into the Moon near Einstein crater on August 5, 2026 at about 8,700 km/h. The impact would occur on the near side’s edge and is unlikely to be visible with amateur equipment, but it highlights growing space junk concerns and the potential for cascading debris (Kessler syndrome) in Earth orbit.
An independent astronomer predicts a 45-foot upper stage from SpaceX’s January 2025 Falcon 9 mission (object 2025-010D) will crash into the Moon on August 5, 2026, near the Einstein crater on the Moon’s western limb at about 5,400 mph. The impact won’t be visible from Earth, but scientists may study the resulting crater with lunar orbiters like the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter. The object has been in a long looping Earth orbit, with solar radiation pressure complicating precise plotting. This would be one of several artificial impacts on the Moon’s surface dating back to the Apollo era.
Astronomer Bill Gray predicts SpaceX’s Falcon 9 upper stage, stranded in a highly elliptical Earth orbit since January 2025, will crash into the Moon near the Einstein crater on August 5 at about 5,400 mph (Mach 7). The impact would be a brief event leaving a small crater, poses no danger to Earth, and highlights space-debris disposal as SpaceX focuses on Starship and Artemis IV—potential imaging by the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter may capture the crater.