The scientist assessed the risks of a collision of space objects with the Moon

An unplanned collision of a space object with the Moon is not a unique event and does not pose a danger to the Earth, however, such cases allow scientists to analyze errors and features of space missions. On August 5, a leading researcher at the Space Research Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Nathan Eismant, told Izvestia about this.

Earlier it was reported that the part of the Falcon 9 rocket remaining after the launch on January 15, 2025, was supposed to collide with the Moon. The four-ton stage was in a highly elliptical orbit intersecting the satellite's path, and due to a lack of fuel for controlled withdrawal, it gradually moved closer to its surface.

It was expected that the object would crash into the Einstein crater area on the visible side of the Moon at a speed of about 8,700 km/h. As a result of the impact, a new crater with a diameter of about 30 meters could form and a cloud of dust and debris could rise. Experts believe that this event is not dangerous for the Earth.

According to Eismant, there have been no publicly announced plans to send any part of the space program to collide with the moon's surface. If this happened, then we are talking about an unplanned event related to the fact that the object was in the vicinity of the Earth—Moon system.

"It's not that when designing the flight scenario of this stage as part of the Artemis project, it was assumed that this part of the program would hit the Moon, the surface of the moon. That is, it is still a kind of surprise," said Eismant.

The scientist stressed that similar cases have already occurred in the history of cosmonautics. As an example, he cited the Russian Luna-25 mission, which ended about three years ago when the spacecraft collided with the surface of the Moon due to an error during the landing program.

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Eismant drew attention to the fact that space technologies remain complex processes, and not everything always develops according to the original scenario. At the same time, after such situations, specialists analyze the causes and draw conclusions in order to avoid repeating mistakes in the future.

"Of course, conclusions are being drawn so that this does not happen again. And again, continuing this topic with the Russian program of flights to the moon, radical conclusions were drawn here," the scientist said.

Eismant added that collisions with the Moon may be of interest to research if they are conducted intentionally. Such experiments make it possible to study the processes occurring with the surface layers of the Earth's satellite after impacts.

At the same time, the scientist noted that the fall of space objects on the Moon does not pose a threat to the Earth. Even if debris forms on impact, the probability of its dangerous impact remains extremely low.

According to the expert, such situations require assessment from the point of view of the future exploration of the Moon, since in the future there may be research vehicles and equipment for exploring resources on its surface.

Astrophysicist Alexey Rudnev announced on July 20 that starting on the 21st of the same month, the earth's magnetic field will begin to change before the onset of magnetic storms. Speaking about the relatively calm atmosphere, he urged not to be fooled by it and to remember that a lull often precedes a dense stream of particles, which causes fluctuations.