Derelict Rocket Crashed Into The Moon Friday

We mentioned a few times that there was a derelict rocket in space that was expected to collide with the moon. Originally, the rocket was believed to be owned by SpaceX, and later, a scientist said it was an old Chinese rocket. China denied the rocket belonged to it.

Whatever nation the rocket belongs to, calculations suggest the rocket impacted the moon’s surface on Friday. However, the impact was not directly observable From Earth, and it will take some time before photographic evidence of the impact is provided.

The impact is believed to have taken place at 7:25 AM Eastern time on the moon’s far side. The rocket would’ve hit the moon’s surface at 5800 mph and is expected to have made a crater 10 to 20 meters wide.

While China denied the rocket belonged to it, astronomers observing the debris said that China was conflating two missions with similar names and was talking about a rocket that launched much later when it denied the derelict rocket belonged to it. NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter will image the crater at some future date.