NASA's LRO images Falcon 9 crater on moon, learns new details

NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) captured images of a new crater formed on the Moon when a SpaceX Falcon 9 upper-stage booster impacted the surface on August 5, 2026. The images, taken between August 11 and 12, revealed details about the crater’s size and depth. The crater is approximately 60 feet wide and less than 10 feet deep, as determined by the length of its shadow. The Narrow-Angle Camera on the LRO captured the images, revealing bright and dark rays from the crater. The darker streaks are made of weathered material, while the brighter streaks are made of fresh material excavated from deeper underground. The impact site was identified through global coordination, with independent astronomers using publicly available data and NASA’s Center for Near Earth Object Studies validating the trajectory calculations.

The images provided precise coordinates for the crater’s location: 19.4759°N, 266.7138°E, 511 meters elevation. The impact site was predicted with an accuracy of about 0.6 miles, and the actual impact location was confirmed by the Korea Pathfinder Lunar Orbiter (Danuri) team. The LRO team refined the crater center coordinates after capturing the images. The impact was calculated using booster-trajectory calculations, with the blue ellipse accounting for lunar terrain, while the red and blue dots showed predicted impact locations. The crater’s formation was studied in detail, with scientists analyzing the crater’s features and the impact’s effects on the lunar surface.

The discovery highlights the precision of NASA’s LRO in capturing detailed lunar features, and the importance of global coordination in identifying impact sites. The images also demonstrate the capability of the Narrow-Angle Camera to detect small features on the Moon. The findings provide valuable data for understanding lunar impacts and the effects of space debris on the Moon’s surface. The accuracy of the impact prediction and the detailed imaging of the crater underscore the importance of continuous monitoring and data collection in planetary science.

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