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SpaceX Rocket Stage Slams Moon at 5,400 MPH

SpaceX Rocket Stage Slams Moon at 5,400 MPH

Above: The full moon against a black, starless sky was photographed on April 02, 2024. Image credit: James C Hooper/via Getty Images

The Spin


This accidental lunar crash is genuinely exciting science — researchers finally get to study a well-documented impact on the Moon with known size, speed and mass. The ejecta plume could rise 60 miles high and stay visible through telescopes for several minutes, offering rare data on crater formation and lunar dust behavior. This kind of controlled natural experiment is exactly what sharpens models that will protect future astronauts on the surface.

A four-ton hunk of space junk slamming into the Moon at 5,400 mph is a stark reminder that reckless disposal of rocket stages has real consequences. SpaceX lacked enough fuel to properly deorbit this stage, and now the lunar surface permanently bears the mark of that failure. With astronauts and lunar bases on the horizon, leaving spent rocket stages in chaotic orbits is a dangerous habit the industry cannot afford to keep.


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© 2026 Improve the News Foundation. All rights reserved.Version 7.4.1

© 2026 Improve the News Foundation.

All rights reserved.

Version 7.4.1