NASA spacecraft discovers a huge new crater on the moon
The crater spans 728 feet and is surrounded by a 4-mile cold spot, giving scientists a rare look at how fresh impacts reshape lunar soil.
- NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter team identified a newly formed 222-meter-wide lunar crater named McGetchin on the Moon's near side, which formed between April 11 and May 22, 2024.
- A comet or asteroid roughly the size of a three- to six-story building struck the lunar surface, releasing approximately 65 billion kilojoules of energy in an impact estimated to occur only once every 132 years.
- Follow-Up thermal data from the Diviner Lunar Radiometer Experiment revealed a 4-mile-wide cold spot around the crater measuring around 16 degrees Fahrenheit cooler at night, indicating the impact loosened surface material and reduced heat retention.
- NASA engineers are calculating the risk of ejected material striking the agency's planned moon base, using these impact measurements to design structures capable of withstanding high-velocity debris.
- The findings, published in Science Advances on Wednesday, offer a rare opportunity to study a recent, large-scale impact as NASA prepares for sustained human presence on the Moon and expanded commercial activities.
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357 Articles
New Impact Crater Spotted on the Moon
Using images from the LROC instrument onboard NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), scientists have discovered the biggest newly formed impact crater ever discovered in the Solar System. The post New Impact Crater Spotted on the Moon appeared first on Sci.News: Breaking Science News.
The Moon Just Got a Massive New Crater That's Wider Than Two End-to-End Football Fields. It's a 'Once-in-a-Lifetime Observation'
The impact crater was formed in 2024 when an object the size of a multistory building crashed into our lunar companion. The resulting divot is about 728 feet wide and 141 feet deep
Great images from NASA showing one of the most impressive craters on the Moon in the last 100 years
NASA scientist discovers largest, newly formed 'once-in-a-century' moon crater after asteroid impact
A powerful asteroid impact carved a massive new crater into the Moon’s surface, creating a landmark discovery for NASA scientists and honoring lunar scientist Tom McGetchin.
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