Abu Dhabi observatory captures Falcon 9 rocket stage impact on Moon
- Last updated: August 5, 2026 | 14:55
Al Khatim Astronomical Observatory in Abu Dhabi, part of the International Astronomy Centre, observed the Falcon 9 rocket's upper stage impacting the Moon. Based on astronomical calculations, the upper stage of SpaceX's Falcon 9 was predicted to collide with the lunar surface on Wednesday, August 5, 2026, at 06:34:31 UTC. This object is identified as (2025-010D).
Engineer Mohammed Shawkat Odeh, the centre's director, explained that this object is from the mission launched on January 15, 2025. During this mission, the Falcon 9 rocket carried two lunar landers: the American Blue Ghost and the Japanese Hakuto-R. After the landers were delivered on their trajectory towards the Moon, the upper stage separated and remained in space. Since then, it has been orbiting Earth in a wide orbit influenced by the gravitational forces of both Earth and the Moon, as well as the pressure of solar radiation.
He assured Al Khaleej that the debris produced by the impact, estimated to be about 1,100 tons of lunar soil and rocks, would not make it to Earth and posed no threat to our planet.
He mentioned that scientists couldn't conclusively determine if the impact would be visible from Earth. Options ranged from a visible flash at the point of impact to a cloud of rocks and dust, or potentially no visible effect at all, with the latter being the most probable. Despite this uncertainty, the event was deemed significant enough to observe.
He noted that at the observatory located in Al Khatim desert, the impact took place during daylight at 10:35 AM local time. With the moon positioned just 16 degrees above the horizon, observing it was extremely challenging due to the daylight and the blurry, low-lying view of the moon.
He mentioned that, based on estimates, the impact would eject roughly 450 cubic meters of lunar soil and rocks, amounting to about 1,100 tons of material, with an average density of 2.5 grams per cubic centimeter. Due to the Moon's weak gravity, these rocks would ascend for about a minute at this speed, reaching a height of around three kilometers above the surface before descending back to the Moon after another minute. Since the impact is close to the Moon's edge, some of this debris might become visible above it. However, the angular distance between the debris and the lunar disk would not exceed approximately 1.5 arcseconds, a small distance making detection challenging even with large telescopes.
He also noted that these calculations involve numerous assumptions. Some rocks could achieve much higher speeds than average, possibly up to 300 meters per second, allowing them to rise for up to three minutes and reach heights about nine times greater than the initial estimates, thereby increasing the chances of detection. This is why it was recommended to aim telescopes at the impact site before the event and continue observing for several minutes afterward, in hopes of spotting any flash or cloud of debris.
He mentioned that, in response to this, Al Khatm Observatory directed its large telescope at the moon, capturing images of the impact site one minute before and five minutes after the event. No flash or emissions were detected from the moon's surface as a result of the impact. Meanwhile, researchers worldwide are still anticipating the findings from both ground-based observatories and space telescopes that observed the event, in order to analyze the impact results.