Moon

Nasa images show 60-foot-wide crater on moon after SpaceX rocket crash

A NASA spacecraft circling the moon is providing the sharpest views yet of the crater carved by a crashing SpaceX rocket. The space agency released before-and-after photos of the impact area on Tuesday. The Falcon rocket's upper stage plowed into the moon at 5,400 mph (8,700 kph) on Aug. 5 after drifting through space for more than a year. It launched a pair of private moon landers with experiments and even a tiny rover in 2025 as part of NASA's push to commercialize lunar exploration. Based on these new photos by NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, the fresh crater appears to be 60 feet (18 meters) across and less than 10 feet (3 meters) deep, according to scientists. Dark and bright streaks are clearly visible emanating like butterfly wings from the crater. The darker lines represent excavated material that was close to the surface and shaped by eons of solar wind, cosmic rays and micrometeorite strikes. The brighter rays indicate fresh rocks and dirt that were hurled from farth

Nasa invites Isro to join Moon Base programme: What is it & why it matters? | Lunar exploration

Nasa has invited the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) to join its Moon Base programme, aimed at establishing a sustained human presence near the lunar South Pole.

SpaceX rocket set to crash into Moon; astronomers prepare for rare event

Discarded Falcon 9 upper stage will strike the lunar surface on August 5, helping researchers study impact physics and future risks from space debris

Over the moon: Apollo missions dominated, Artemis II drew muted attention

Where the Apollo missions routinely hogged the headlines, Artemis II, whose mission was consequential for science, usually made it to second lead, sometimes third

Artemis II explained: Inside NASA’s first crewed Moon mission in 54 years

NASA’s Artemis II mission has launched, sending four astronauts around the Moon for the first time since 1972. Here’s what makes this mission historic, what went wrong after liftoff

Artemis II astronauts halfway to moon, set to surpass Apollo 13 record

Now more than halfway to the moon, the Artemis II astronauts were toasted by Canada on Saturday as they prepared for their historic lunar fly-around to push deeper into space than even the Apollo astronauts. The three Americans and one Canadian will reach their destination Monday, photographing the mysterious lunar far side as they zoom around. It's the first moonbound crew in more than 53 years, picking up where NASA's Apollo programme left off. Artemis II was poised to set a distance record for humans, traveling more than 252,000 miles (400,000 kilometres) from Earth before hanging a U-turn behind the moon and heading home without stopping or entering lunar orbit. The record is currently held by Apollo 13. The Canadian Space Agency celebrated the country's role in the mission, speaking from Quebec with astronaut Jeremy Hansen as he headed toward his lunar rendezvous. Hansen is the first non-US citizen to fly to the moon. "Today he is making history for Canada," said Canadian Spac

Artemis II: Nasa's one mission, multiple agendas worth $100 billion

The Apollo program set a precedent that Nasa should strive to have a human spaceflight initiative that drives US space exploration forward

Ask for the Moon: Artemis II may revive humanity's path beyond Earth orbit

For all its benign demeanour, which has inspired many a song, the Moon isn't exactly welcoming. Approaching it demands precision. Landing on it even more so

Total lunar eclipse 2026: Date, time and when, where to watch in India

On Mar 3, 2026, there will be a rare total lunar eclipse or the Blood Moon, which will be partially visible in many regions of India. Here is how to witness this celestial spectacle

Nasa's Artemis II to carry astronauts near Moon after five decades

The first crewed mission beyond low-Earth orbit since 1972 will send four astronauts around the Moon, testing systems critical for future lunar landings

Moon gets its own clock: China develops first software for lunar time

Time does not pass at the same speed on Earth and the moon; with lower gravity, lunar clocks run faster by around 56 millionths of a second daily

December's 'Cold Moon': When to watch 2025's final supermoon this week

This week, the final full moon of 2025, known as the 'Cold Moon', rises on December 5. Several livestreams will broadcast the event in real time if the weather or city skylines block your view

Moon's untapped treasure: Why companies want to mine moon for Helium-3

The race for the next great resource isn’t on earth - it’s on the moon. A Finnish tech firm has just spent over $300 million buying Helium-3

Isro collects Chandrayaan-2 data to aid study of Moon's polar regions

ISRO on Saturday said it has collected advanced data from the Chandrayaan-2 lunar orbiter to gain a deeper understanding of the Moon's polar regions, including parameters describing the physical and dielectric properties of its surface. This is India's major value addition towards future global exploration of the Moon, it said. According to an ISRO statement, the Chandrayaan-2 Orbiter has been in orbit around the Moon since 2019 and has been providing high-quality data. One of the payloads, the Dual Frequency Synthetic Aperture Radar (DFSAR), is the first instrument that has mapped the Moon using the L-band in full-polarimetric mode and in the highest resolution (25m/pixel). This advanced radar mode sends and receives signals in both vertical and horizontal directions, making it ideal for studying surface properties, it said. The space agency said that since its launch, about 1,400 radar datasets have been collected and processed to create polarimetric mosaics of the north and sou

Nuclear reactor on the Moon? Nasa's Sean Duffy has an elaborate plan

Acting NASA administrator Sean Duffy sees the plan to build a nuclear reactor on the Moon as a new space race, especially given China's and Russia's growing ambitions in space

Brace for shorter days soon: Earth is rotating faster than ever recorded

In an unexpected twist, Earth's spin is set to accelerate in July and August, leading to the shortest days on record - with July 9, July 22 and August 5 tipped to lose precious milliseconds

Strawberry Moon to hang lowest in decades - here's what makes it special

June's full moon, the last of the spring season in the Northern Hemisphere, is also known as the Strawberry Moon. Here's all you need to know

Strawberry Moon 2025: When and where to watch this full moon in India?

This month, skywatchers in India can witness 'the Strawberry Moon 2025', nature's gentle nod to the summer arrival. The best time to watch in India will be on the June 10, 2025 at evening

Flower moon 2025: What to expect from May's micromoon and why it's special

The May full moon or 'Flower Moon' will rise on May 12 at around 12.56 pm EDT, precisely. Here's why this micromoon is special and what it means for skywatchers

Blood moon lunar eclipse on March 13 & 14: Will it be visible from India?

Lunar eclipse 2025: The first lunar eclipse of 2025 will take place on March 13 and 14. The event is likely to last for around 65 minutes, and this event will also feature a "Blood Moon"