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    Newly discovered moon crater likely formed in a 2024 impact

    Complex reports that the crater is about 728 feet wide—bigger than the Roman Colosseum—and cites researchers who say studying it could help NASA protect future moon bases.

    ComplexCO
    New York PostNY
    Phil MetzgerPM
    3 Sources, 28d ago, first seen 28d ago

    TLDR

    The New York Post reports that a NASA spacecraft discovered the crater after its formation initially went undetected. Complex says it likely formed when part of an asteroid or comet struck the moon in 2024, citing researchers who say an impact this large happens about once every 132 years.

    A separate post analyzing the crater warns that loose soil thrown out by the impact could jeopardize landings on its rim and complicate rover travel. It also says landings farther away would kick up more material, increasing the sandblasting of other lunar equipment.

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    3 Sources, first seen 28d ago

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    Combined views

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    3 Sources, first seen 28d ago

    1.2K likes51 comments96 saves139 reposts

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    3 Sources

    Complex@ComplexScientists discovered a massive new crater on the moon that is bigger than the Roman Colosseum. The crater is about 728 feet wide and was likely created when part of an asteroid or comet hit the moon in 2024. Researchers say an impact this large happens about once every 132 years, and studying it could help NASA protect future moon bases. [📸: @nasa ]28d
    New York Post@nypostNASA spacecraft discovers huge new crater on the moon https://trib.al/cw4ZGsc28d
    Phil Metzger@DrPhiltillThis new crater that appeared on the Moon illustrates something important about lunar landings and rovers driving on the soil. The LRO spacecraft measured the temperature of the soil around the crater and found that at night it is 16 degrees cooler than elsewhere, out to a radius of 4 miles from the impact!!! Cooler lunar soil at night means it is fluffier. The impact blew out a massive amount of soil and it fell loosely on the surface. It will take a long time to become re-compacted. We don’t have a good handle on the rates of compaction in the lunar environment, yet, but I’ll go out on a limb to say it could take 10,000s to 100,000s of years. The dominant processes are probably impact vibrations and thermal cycling. So what happens if you try to land on this fluffier surface? Answer: you’ll blow possibly 10x more soil and dust per second compared to landing on compacted soil. Fortunately these fluffy blankets are thin. On the crater rim they are meters thick, but farther away only centimeters and even farther only millimeters. Landing on a large, young crater’s rim can jeopardize the mission due to the thick, loose soil. Landing miles away won’t, but it will cause higher amounts of sandblasting to other assets on the Moon. Driving on the softer ejecta blanket can also be a problem, wherever the thickness of the fluffy deposit is comparable to, say, about 1/4 the wheel radius. Conclusion: This new impact crater gives us great data to help assess the operational challenges of landing and driving on the Moon. https://assets.science.nasa.gov/content/dam/science/missions/lro/McGetchinLROblinkImage.gif?w=592&h=824&fit=clip&crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint27d
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    3 Sources

    Complex@ComplexScientists discovered a massive new crater on the moon that is bigger than the Roman Colosseum. The crater is about 728 feet wide and was likely created when part of an asteroid or comet hit the moon in 2024. Researchers say an impact this large happens about once every 132 years, and studying it could help NASA protect future moon bases. [📸: @nasa ]28d
    New York Post@nypostNASA spacecraft discovers huge new crater on the moon https://trib.al/cw4ZGsc28d
    Phil Metzger@DrPhiltillThis new crater that appeared on the Moon illustrates something important about lunar landings and rovers driving on the soil. The LRO spacecraft measured the temperature of the soil around the crater and found that at night it is 16 degrees cooler than elsewhere, out to a radius of 4 miles from the impact!!! Cooler lunar soil at night means it is fluffier. The impact blew out a massive amount of soil and it fell loosely on the surface. It will take a long time to become re-compacted. We don’t have a good handle on the rates of compaction in the lunar environment, yet, but I’ll go out on a limb to say it could take 10,000s to 100,000s of years. The dominant processes are probably impact vibrations and thermal cycling. So what happens if you try to land on this fluffier surface? Answer: you’ll blow possibly 10x more soil and dust per second compared to landing on compacted soil. Fortunately these fluffy blankets are thin. On the crater rim they are meters thick, but farther away only centimeters and even farther only millimeters. Landing on a large, young crater’s rim can jeopardize the mission due to the thick, loose soil. Landing miles away won’t, but it will cause higher amounts of sandblasting to other assets on the Moon. Driving on the softer ejecta blanket can also be a problem, wherever the thickness of the fluffy deposit is comparable to, say, about 1/4 the wheel radius. Conclusion: This new impact crater gives us great data to help assess the operational challenges of landing and driving on the Moon. https://assets.science.nasa.gov/content/dam/science/missions/lro/McGetchinLROblinkImage.gif?w=592&h=824&fit=clip&crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint27d
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