According to Gulf News, a discarded piece of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket is on a collision course with the moon, traveling at an estimated speed of 8,700 kilometers per hour. The rocket stage, which was launched in 2015 as part of a mission to send a deep-space climate observatory into orbit, has been drifting through space for several years.
Astronomers and space debris experts have tracked the object's trajectory, noting that it is expected to strike the lunar surface. The impact is anticipated to occur on the far side of the moon, away from direct observation by Earth-based telescopes, though it may provide researchers with a unique opportunity to study the lunar subsurface composition through the resulting crater.
This event highlights the growing concerns among the scientific community regarding the accumulation of space debris in cislunar space. While the moon has been struck by natural meteoroids for billions of years, the increasing frequency of human-made objects reaching the lunar surface has prompted calls for better tracking and management of orbital hardware that moves beyond Earth's immediate vicinity.
The report regarding a discarded SpaceX rocket stage impacting the moon is a well-documented astronomical event that occurred in early 2022. While the story is single-sourced in this context, it aligns with established scientific reporting from that period regarding space debris trajectories.
No corroborating trusted sources found.
Original report: Gulf News