A SpaceX rocket booster is about to slam into the Moon
A discarded SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket booster is on a collision course with the Moon following a 2025 launch mission. Astronomers are tracking the object, noting that the impact might be visible from Earth.
Why it matters
The event underscores the increasing amount of space debris and the challenges of managing orbital objects in the modern space race.
Scott Sutherland Meteorologist, Science Writer Published on Jul. 30, 2026, 7:02 PM Unlike the previous rocket booster impact on the Moon, from 2022, this time there's a chance we might actually see something from here on Earth.
In less than a week, an out-of-control rocket booster will slam into the Moon, producing a new crater, and possibly an impact plume that might be seen from Earth.
On January 15, 2025, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket blasted off from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Perched atop the rocket were two new robotic landers bound for the Moon — Firefly Aerospace's Blue Ghost Mission 1 and ispace Inc's Hakuto-R mission 2.
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