South Korean Probe Captures First Images of Crater Left by SpaceX Rocket on the Moon

South Korea's Aerospace Research Institute (KARI) has released the first photographs of the crater left behind after a SpaceX Falcon 9 second stage struck the lunar surface. The images were captured by Danuri, the country's lunar orbiter, which circles the moon at roughly 100 kilometers altitude and passed over the impact site shortly after the collision occurred.

KARI said on its X account that it photographed the site both before and after the event, and the resulting images show clear signs of a fresh impact. Astronomers had earlier predicted the collision would carve out a crater dozens of feet wide and nearly 12 feet (3.6 meters) deep. The new photos confirm the crater is sizable, larger than several cars combined, though still minuscule against the roughly 2,160-mile-wide lunar surface.

The imagery adds to earlier confirmation from the Very Large Telescope, where astronomers detected sodium and lithium rising from the lunar surface, verifying that the rocket fragment did indeed strike the moon. Ahead of the impact, agencies including NASA had cautioned that observing the exact moment of collision would be difficult due to weather and timing constraints. NASA also operates its own lunar orbiters, so higher-resolution images of the site may emerge in coming days following data checks, though even those are unlikely to offer a highly detailed view of the crater itself.

Why the rocket crashed

The Falcon 9 fragment struck the moon after spending more than a year in an unstable orbit. The rocket launched in January 2025 on a mission to deliver lunar landers. Over the following year, the combined gravitational pull of Earth, the moon and the sun gradually shifted its trajectory until it eventually collided with the lunar surface.

SpaceX explained that most of its missions include a controlled deorbit of the Falcon second stage so it safely re-enters over the ocean. However, in higher-energy missions such as lunar transfers, nearly all of the vehicle's performance goes toward placing the payload into its intended orbit, making a controlled deorbit maneuver not always possible. The company said it is working to handle hardware left in space responsibly and is collaborating with NASA to find an optimal disposal solution for such objects.