SpaceX Falcon 9 upper stage strikes Moon near Einstein Crater
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A Falcon 9 upper stage built by SpaceX struck the Moon near Einstein Crater on August 5, 2026, marking the first uncontrolled lunar impact where the object's origin and physical characteristics were known in advance. The stage, which had been in a looping Earth orbit since its January 2025 launch, was tracked by astronomers who linked its trajectory directly to the Ghost Riders in the Sky mission.
The Impact
On August 5, 2026, a SpaceX Falcon 9 upper stage weighing approximately 4,000 to 4,900 kilograms struck the lunar surface near Einstein Crater. The impact created a crater that, unlike typical lunar scars, comes with a detailed history: the object's international designator was 2025-010D, its NORAD catalogue number 62719. The stage had been in an unguided orbit since separating from its payload of two lunar landers in January 2025. Firefly Aerospace's Blue Ghost landed successfully in Mare Crisium in March 2025; ispace's Resilience crashed during its landing attempt in June 2025.
The Known Story
Unlike a natural meteoroid, the stage's biography was pieced together from launch records, optical observations, and orbital analysis. NASA's documentation provided the exact departure time and pad—LC-39A at Kennedy Space Center at 1:11 a.m. ET on January 15, 2025. The Falcon 9 upper stage, roughly 12 meters long and 4 meters wide, separated from the landers and remained in a highly elliptical orbit that repeatedly crossed the Moon's path. A University of Arizona-led team used optical data to confirm the object's motion and surface properties matched the stage's expected behavior, independently verifying its identity without relying solely on catalogue entries.
What's Next
Lunar scientists are analyzing the impact data to better understand the cratering process for a known mass and velocity. It remains unclear how the stage's residual propellant and unknown orientation at impact will complicate these analyses, and whether future uncontrolled impacts can be similarly documented.
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SpaceX Falcon 9 upper stage strikes Moon near Einstein Crater
