{"id":1995,"date":"2026-08-05T09:00:15","date_gmt":"2026-08-05T09:00:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.asianewscast.com\/?p=1995"},"modified":"2026-08-05T09:00:16","modified_gmt":"2026-08-05T09:00:16","slug":"piece-of-spacex-rocket-the-size-of-a-school-bus-crashes-into-the-moon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.asianewscast.com\/?p=1995","title":{"rendered":"Piece of SpaceX rocket the size of a school bus crashes into the Moon"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"rich-share\" data-testid=\"rich-share\">\n<div class=\"rich-share__divider\">\n<div class=\"listen-to-article\"><button class=\"listen-to-article__button\" data-testid=\"listen-to-article-button\"><title>Listen<\/title>Listen (2 mins)<\/button><\/div>\n<div class=\"rich-share__update-reading-list-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"update-reading-list\">\n<p class=\"update-reading-list__button-text\">Save<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"rich-share__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"rich-share__button-wrapper\"><button class=\"rich-share__button row\" aria-expanded=\"false\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"screen-reader-text\">Click here to share on social media<\/div>\n<p><title>share-nodes<\/title><\/button><\/p>\n<p class=\"rich-share__social-text\">Share<\/p>\n<div class=\"rich-share__links rich-share__links--row\" data-testid=\"share-links\">\n<div class=\"rich-share__social rich-share__social--row\"><a class=\"rich-share__social-link row\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" aria-label=\"Share on Facebook\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Faje.news%2Fg9jlbk\"><title>facebook<\/title><\/a><a class=\"rich-share__social-link row\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" aria-label=\"Share on Twitter\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=Piece%20of%20SpaceX%20rocket%20the%20size%20of%20a%20school%20bus%20crashes%20into%20the%20Moon&amp;source=sharethiscom&amp;related=sharethis&amp;via=AJEnglish&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Faje.news%2Fg9jlbk\"><title>x<\/title><\/a><a class=\"rich-share__social-link row u-hidden--desktop\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" aria-label=\"Share on Whatsapp\" href=\"\/\/send?text=https%3A%2F%2Faje.news%2Fg9jlbk\"><title>whatsapp-stroke<\/title><\/a><a class=\"rich-share__social-link row copylink\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" aria-label=\"Copy link\" href=\"https:\/\/aje.news\/g9jlbk\"><title>copylink<\/title><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"google-preferred-source\"><button class=\"google-preferred-source__button\" aria-label=\"Add Al Jazeera on Google\" data-testid=\"google-preferred-source-button\"><title>google<\/title><span class=\"google-preferred-source__text\">Add Al Jazeera on Google<\/span><\/button><button aria-label=\"See more of Al Jazeera\u2019s trusted journalism by adding us as a preferred source on Google.\" class=\"tooltip-accessible_trigger\"><title>info<\/title><\/button><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-featured__media\">\n<figure class=\"article-featured-image\">\n<div class=\"responsive-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"eager\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/ap_6a72dbb83e13f-1785912248.jpg?resize=770%2C513&amp;quality=80\" alt=\"A rocket lifts off.\"><\/div><figcaption>A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from pad 39A with a payload of a pair of lunar landers at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida [John Raoux\/AP]<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-info m--t-20 m--desktop-b-30 m--b-mobile-20\">\n<div class=\"byline byline--no-avatars\">\n<div class=\"byline-content\">\n<div class=\"contributors-list contributors-list--byline\"><span class=\"contributors-list__by-prefix\">By <\/span>AP<!-- --> and <!-- -->Reuters<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-dates\">\n<div class=\"date-simple\"><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Published On 5 Aug 2026<\/span><span aria-hidden=\"true\">5 Aug 2026<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wysiwyg wysiwyg--all-content\" aria-live=\"polite\">\n<p data-path-to-node=\"0\">A four-tonne chunk of debris the size of a school bus from a SpaceX rocket has crashed into the Moon, according to tracking data, creating a new crater on the lunar surface and providing scientists a rare look at high-velocity cosmic impacts.<\/p>\n<p data-path-to-node=\"1\">The object, the second stage of a Falcon 9 rocket launched in early 2025, struck the Moon early Wednesday near the Einstein Crater, at approximately 8,700 kilometres per hour (5,400 miles per hour), according to orbital trajectories mapped by independent astronomers and confirmed by space-tracking agencies. It struck the lunar surface with the force of roughly three tonnes of TNT.<\/p>\n<section class=\"more-on\">\n<h2 class=\"more-on__heading\">Recommended Stories<!-- --> <\/h2>\n<p><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">list of 3 items<\/span><\/p>\n<ul class=\"more-on__list\">\n<li class=\"more-on__article\"><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">list 1 of 3<\/span><a class=\"more-on__link\" href=\"\/economy\/2026\/8\/4\/elon-musks-spacex-reports-reports-losses-but-less-than-expected\">Elon Musk\u2019s SpaceX reports losses but less than expected<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"more-on__article\"><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">list 2 of 3<\/span><a class=\"more-on__link\" href=\"\/news\/2026\/6\/9\/nasa-announces-astronauts-for-artemis-iii-spaceflight-scheduled-for-2027\">NASA announces astronauts for Artemis III spaceflight, scheduled for 2027<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"more-on__article\"><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">list 3 of 3<\/span><a class=\"more-on__link\" href=\"\/video\/talk-to-al-jazeera\/2026\/8\/2\/tanks-troops-and-space\">Tanks, troops and space<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">end of list<\/span><\/section>\n<p data-path-to-node=\"1\">Such rocket hardware typically re-enters Earth\u2019s atmosphere to burn up or splash down into remote ocean zones after delivering payloads into orbit.<\/p>\n<p data-path-to-node=\"4\">But over 18 months, gravitational forces exerted by the Sun, Earth, and Moon gradually altered its flight path, setting it on an inevitable collision course. SpaceX said the trajectory leading to the crash was unintentional but unpreventable, given the vehicle\u2019s remaining fuel reserves.<\/p>\n<p data-path-to-node=\"4\">\u201cWhat has happened is essentially a mixture of solar activity and gravity forces have put it on a path toward the moon,\u201d Julianna Scheiman, SpaceX \u200cdirector of NASA science and Dragon programmes, told reporters on Monday.<\/p>\n<p data-path-to-node=\"5\">Orbital observation craft, including NASA\u2019s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) and South Korea\u2019s Danuri spacecraft, have adjusted their sensor suites to document the collision site. While the instantaneous flash will be obscured by daylight on the lunar surface, orbiters will survey the ejected dust plume and take high-resolution before-and-after imagery of the newly formed crater.<\/p>\n<div class=\"container--ads in-article-ads\">\n<div class=\"ads\"><span class=\"ads__title\"> Advertisement <\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p data-path-to-node=\"5\">Space tracking expert Bill Gray told The Associated Press news agency: \u201cIt doesn\u2019t present any immediate danger, though it does highlight a certain carelessness about how leftover space hardware is disposed of.\u201d He added that \u201cthings are getting crowded up there.\u201d<\/p>\n<p data-path-to-node=\"5\">Wednesday\u2019s collision marks only the second known instance of discarded rocket space debris accidentally crashing into the Moon. The first occurred on March 4, 2022, when part of a Chinese Long March 3C rocket launched in 2014 impacted the lunar far side, carving out an unusual double crater.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>ListenListen (2 mins) Save Click here to share on social media share-nodes Share facebookxwhatsapp-strokecopylink googleAdd Al Jazeera on Googleinfo A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from pad 39A with a payload of a pair of lunar landers at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida [John Raoux\/AP] By AP and Reuters Published On [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1995","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Piece of SpaceX rocket the size of a school bus crashes into the Moon - 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