Tomorrow, a momentous event will take place on the Moon: a rocket stage will fall, allowing us to watch how an object controlled by humans impacts our satellite for the first time. An occasion to discuss how space debris might become a significant problem for everyone in our cosmic "neighborhood," not just for us. I think we've nailed it.

A few facts are known, however there are numerous unanswered questions about this collision. The event will take place on the Moon's hidden side, thus no telescope on the ground will be able to capture it.

The search will be led by NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), and the results of its investigations are expected within the next several weeks. Because of the uncertainty of where it will land at a speed of 2.6 kilometers per second, a crater measuring 19 meters in diameter will be created. According to the journal Scientific American, a 570-kilometer-wide crater known as the Hertzsprung crater is the most likely location for the asteroid impact.

Is this a SpaceX or a Chinese rocket?

It's not certain exactly what will land on the lunar surface. Another question remains unsolved. When astronomer Bill Gray (who manages the Pluto Project program that monitors distant space objects) issued a warning in February 2015, he initially concluded that the top stage of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, which launched the Deep Space Climate Observatory satellite (DSCOVR), was responsible. However, Gray's own admission that the orbit did not fit led to more investigation. As recently as 2014, he commented, "It resembles the orbital path used by the upper stage of the Chinese Chang'e 5-T1 mission's rocket." Several separate works have also raised the potential that this could happen.

Even so, the Asian behemoth insists that none of its technologies is to blame for this catastrophe. China's Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin claimed a few weeks ago that the upper stage of the mission-related rocket hit the Earth's atmosphere and burned up completely. There is a concern, though, with China's "irresponsible behaviors" in recent years. The 23-ton core stage of its Long March 5B rocket crashed into the sea shortly after launch last year, for example. Such massive chunks are usually demolished in a controlled way for the sake of public safety.

However, tracking data from the US Space Force's 18th Space Control Squadron (18 SPCS) corroborated his theory that Chinese rocket debris re-entered the atmosphere in 2015. This research, however, was based on extrapolation information from orbit coordinates, not direct confirmation of the fact. Even more convincing evidence suggests that Chang'e 5-T1 stage did not deorbit after all, as the 18th SPCS verified to 'SpaceNews' lately.

What are the chances of a collision?

When the object hits the ground, "a shock wave will travel along the projectile at several miles per second. ' There will be an explosion of metal at the rocket's back end in milliseconds, obliterating everything in its path. Regolith is the upper layer of dust on the Moon's surface, and a twin shock wave will travel deep into this upper layer of dust. If a spacecraft were in the vicinity at the time, the impact's compression would heat the dust and rocks, causing a red-hot flash to be visible from space. As dust and sand-sized particles rise into the sky, a cloud of melted rock and metal will form at the site of collision. This time there will be no flame to burn the ejected material, so it will rain down again on the surrounding surface after a few minutes. The ill-fated rocket will be practically unrecognizable when it explodes "he explains why this is the case. Pablo Hayne, University of Colorado Boulder Assistant Professor of Astrophysical and Planetary Sciences.

LCROSS, NASA's Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS), is the name of the project he worked on. This project, launched in 2009, involved purposely crashing a probe into a permanently shadowed crater on the south pole of the moon in order to study the results. A great success was achieved" The scientists were able to determine that the impact had liberated a few hundred pounds of water ice from the Moon's surface by analyzing the makeup of the dust plume that rose into the sunlight. For billions of years, comets have been delivering water and organic chemicals to the Moon as they crash into its surface "The Conversation quotes Hayne as saying..

supporters and detractors

This fact has sparked a heated dispute. Science proponents have expressed excitement about this collision for the unique possibility to observe an asteroid crash the lunar surface in near real-time from Earth.. "This will give a serendipitous experiment that could reveal much about how natural collisions hit and roll across planetary surfaces," Hayne concedes in advance of the crash. Research into the mechanics of the collision will help scientists better comprehend the dry landscape of the Moon, as well as the implications of impacts on the Earth and other planets. "

Some, on the other hand, see it as a stark illustration of the human race's influence beyond our globe. One more crater on the Moon doesn't concern me," he says. About a half-billion of the largest craters on the planet are above ten meters in diameter. Pollution of the Moon with bacteria or compounds that could be misinterpreted for evidence of past life on the Moon should be our first worry "The Open University's Professor of Planetary Geosciences, David Rothery, made the comments.

"Meteorites strike the Moon on a regular basis." An assistant professor of archaeology and space studies at Flinders University argues that the Falcon 9's influence will be just one more. As a litmus test for changing public perceptions of our obligations to the space environment, it's fascinating to see how it plays out."