SpaceX Falcon 9 Upper Stage Impacts the Moon, Creating Estimated 60-Foot Crater

A four-ton SpaceX Falcon 9 upper stage from the January 2025 Blue Ghost mission struck the lunar surface on August 5, 2026, at 5,400 mph. NASA estimates a crater roughly 60 feet wide and 12 feet deep. Chile's Very Large Telescope detected a sodium and lithium plume lasting five to 10 minutes. NASA's LRO and South Korea's KPLO will attempt to image the site.