Defunct Falcon 9 Upper Stage Slams Into the Moon Near Einstein Crater

A derelict SpaceX Falcon 9 second stage — left in a high, elliptical Earth-Moon orbit after expending nearly all its propellant delivering the Blue Ghost/Resilience payloads to the Moon in early 2025 — struck the lunar surface on August 5, 2026 at roughly 5,400 mph (8,700 km/h), gouging a fresh crater near Einstein crater on the Moon's northwestern limb. South Korea's Danuri lunar orbiter began observations about 30 minutes before impact and conducted 8 imaging passes over the site, capturing before/after photos of the roughly 27-meter (89 ft) crater and surrounding ejecta. The stage was not deliberately targeted; it is one of dozens of derelict rocket bodies whose decaying orbits are expected to intersect the Moon over the coming years as a side effect of high-energy lunar and deep-space missions.