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Drifting SpaceX Rocket Heading For Accidental Collision With the Moon
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The accidental impact offers a rare chance to observe a real lunar collision and calibrate ejecta-plume simulations against actual data, which could improve planning for future lunar missions. If the plume is bright enough, it will be observable by ground and space-based telescopes.
Written by elseif from the cluster below · every claim links back to a sourceThe three things worth knowing
The Falcon 9 upper stage from the Firefly Blue Ghost-1 launch on Jan. 15, 2025 is predicted to collide with the Moon on Aug. 5, 2026 near the Einstein and Bell craters.
Simulations by researchers at the University of Texas, Austin estimate the central ejecta spike could reach 47 to 60 miles altitude, with the plume several orders of magnitude brighter than the dark-sky background for the first few minutes.
Scientists view the event as an opportunity to validate ejecta-plume models against a real impact, which has implications for all future lunar surface deliveries.
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