South Korea’s Aerospace Administration has released a set of stills that capture the Moon before and after the impact of a Falcon 9 upper stage on Wednesday night.
The debris struck the lunar surface at about 06:35 GMT, according to KASA’s observations.
SpaceX has clarified that the collision was accidental and not intentionally aimed.
The Falcon 9 upper stage, roughly the size of a five‑storey building and weighing around 4,000 kg on Earth, was travelling at roughly 5,400 mph when it reached the Moon.
The flash produced on impact was too faint to be seen by amateur astronomers, but larger observatories, including those in Seoul, are analysing the data.
American astronomer Matt Bothwell from the University of Cambridge has warned that heightened space debris could make future missions more difficult.
The rocket that generated the debris was launched in January 2025, carrying two lunar landers, and the upper stage has been drifting in a looping orbit since then.
The same booster is slated for its 18th flight on 10 August, in which SpaceX aims to launch 29 Starlink satellites to low‑Earth orbit.
The incident underscores the need for better tracking and regulation of space junk to safeguard future space endeavour.
