The Moon’s Rocket-Created Craters have Been Resolved

The origin of a set of craters on the far side of the Moon has been clarified by a recent study from the University of Arizona, establishing that the probable cause was a discarded rocket booster from China’s Chang’e 5-T1 lunar mission.

A fresh set of craters emerged unexpectedly near the Hertzsprung crater on the far side of the Moon on March 4, 2022. Detected by NASA’s Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), their origin posed a puzzle. Given that amateur astronomers had observed what seemed to be a spent rocket approaching the Moon before the impact, the possibility of a meteor was dismissed.

The initial inquiry centered on the origin and ownership of the rocket.

Rocket Identity Mystery Unveiled

Initially, signs suggested a SpaceX Falcon 9 second stage rocket utilized for deploying the Deep Space Climate Observatory (DSCOVR) probe in 2015. However, subsequent evidence identified a more fitting match in the third stage of a Chinese Long March 3C, employed in launching the Chang’e 5-T1 lunar flyby mission in 2014.

Yet, the conclusive response remained uncertain. Was it genuinely a Chinese space rocket drifting through space for seven years? What caused its erratic tumbling, and why did it result in two craters instead of one?

In an effort to address these questions, researchers from the University of Arizona, led by Tanner Campbell, utilized spectral data from the suspect rocket named WE0913A, collected by the student-built RAPTORS-1 telescope. This data was employed to conduct a thorough analysis of the light reflected off the rocket’s surface.

The light signature analysis of WE0913A strongly suggested that the third stage of Chang’e 5-T1 was the most likely match, a confirmation later provided by the US Space Force, which verified that the rocket did not burn up in Earth’s atmosphere post-launch.

Unexpected Tumble

An intriguing observation was that the rocket wasn’t exhibiting the expected wobbling of an empty metal tube with an engine at one end. Instead, it was tumbling end-over-end, indicating the presence of a substantial mass at the opposite end from the engine, potentially outweighing a typical instrument pack associated with the design.

While the nature of this mysterious mass remains unknown, it does provide an explanation for the dual impact craters at the crash site. These twin craters suggest that the enigmatic mass is equivalent in weight to the booster’s engine.

Roberto Furfaro, the University of Arizona’s Space4 deputy director, remarked, “Obviously, we have no idea what it might have been – perhaps some extra support structure, or additional instrumentation, or something else. We probably won’t ever know.”

Read the original article on: New Atlas

Read more: An Enigmatic Unseen Influence Is Producing Water on the Moon.