Upper stage impacting the moon on 2026 August 5(projectpluto.com)
207 points by ryannevius 22 hours ago | 65 comments
tl;dr: A Falcon 9 upper stage (2025-010D) from the January 2025 Blue Ghost/Hakuto-R lunar launch is predicted to impact the Moon on August 5, 2026 at ~06:34 UTC, near crater Einstein at 2.43 km/s. Solar radiation pressure makes the exact impact time/location uncertain by seconds and kilometers, and while the flash likely won't be visible from Earth due to the low impact velocity, ejecta near the lunar limb might be observable, and LRO will likely image the resulting ~17m crater afterward.
HN Discussion:
  • Appreciation for the site's minimal, old-school HTML design without modern web bloat
  • Criticism of SpaceX for leaving trash/debris on the Moon and in space
  • Concern about lack of regulation and tracking for space debris from private launches
  • Curiosity about technical details omitted, like remaining fuel affecting impact energy
  • Humorous/pop-culture references to the impact event (Star Wars, Space 1999, Roger Wilco)