If you own a sufficiently powerful telescope, Wednesday morning might offer an historic moment: witness a dead SpaceX rocket stage crashing into the moon. Predicted to hit near Einstein crater at over 5,400 mph, the impact could produce a visible plume of lunar dust.
While scientists predict it could be visible from Earth with the right equipment, catching sight may require keen eyes and steady hands. The best views are expected in the US Southeast, where atmospheric conditions will be most favourable for observing.
The event offers valuable insight into what future missions might generate when landing hardware on the moon. NASA’s plans to return astronauts to the lunar surface within a few years make this crash all the more prescient. Lunar colonizers could face abrasive moon rock debris travelling at 300-400 meters per second.
Professor David Goldstein notes that if you look back at old Apollo photos, Neil and Buzz are covered in dirt upon re-entering their lunar module. This stark reminder of space dust’s potential impact on astronauts adds a chilling note to the spectacle.
