South Korea’s space agency KASA has released the first images of the Moon’s surface after fragments of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket crashed into it. BBC reports, writes UNN.
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The images were taken by the Danuri lunar orbiter after the impact. The agency also showed photographs of the same area of the lunar surface before the debris fell, allowing a comparison of the changes after the impact.
According to KASA, fragments of the rocket’s upper stage crashed onto the Moon on Wednesday at around 06:35 GMT. SpaceX stressed that the collision was not intentional.
A fragment the size of a five-story building
The Falcon 9 upper stage, which remained in space after launch, was approximately the size of a five-story building, weighed about 4 tonnes and, according to scientists’ estimates, struck the Moon at a speed of about 8,700 km/h.
University of Cambridge astronomer Matt Bothwell noted that the event posed no danger to Earth, but once again drew attention to the problem of space debris.
Space is becoming increasingly crowded. It is entirely possible that within several decades it will be quite difficult to travel beyond Earth’s orbit
A spent SpaceX rocket stage crashed into the Moon and raised a cloud of dust06.08.26, 05:37