SpaceX rocket booster is on a 5,400-mph collision course with the moon - CBS News
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket booster, which had been in orbit since January 2025, has collided with the moon. NASA and independent astronomers confirmed the impact, noting that it posed no danger to Earth.
Why it matters
This event highlights the growing issue of space debris and the complexities of managing orbital trajectories for commercial space missions.
A wayward 8,800-pound SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket booster slammed into the moon very early on Wednesday in a rare case of a man-made collision with the lunar surface, scientists confirmed.The upper part of the rocket, which boosted two lunar landers into space in January 2025, disengaged as the two spacecraft went on their way. The mission was partly successful, as Firefly's Blue Ghost-1 made a successful landing, but Japan's ispace Hakuto-R crash-landed on the surface.The rocket, which was about 45 feet long and 12 feet wide, had been in orbit ever since — until about 2:35 a.m. ET on Wednesday, when it was on track to crash into the lunar surface at a speed of 5,400 mph.
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