The Moon has been struck by billions of impactors over four billion years, but the one that hit near Einstein Crater yesterday is the only crater ever formed that comes with a full biography: we know who built it, what it weighed, when it left Earth, and where it hit to within metres

The object that reached the Moon near Einstein Crater on 5 August 2026 was different. This was not the first human-made object to strike the Moon, nor the first whose mass and trajectory were known. A simplified reconstruction of the ground track also passed within about 66 kilometres of Launch Complex 39A. The physical-characterisation team gave an upper estimate of about 40 metres, while Gray’s comparison with the accidental 2022 rocket impact suggested something nearer 17 metres. The 2026 stage is only the second rocket body known to have hit the Moon unintentionally when equipment failures are excluded.