[KARAH RUCKER]

A MYSTERIOUS CRASH ON THE MOON’S SURFACE LAST YEAR LEFT SCIENTISTS WANTING TO KNOW WHAT CREATED A PAIR OF CRATERS

A NEW ANALYSIS FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA FOUND IT WAS THE REMNANTS OF A CHINESE ROCKET THAT WAS HAULING AN UNKNOWN  PAYLOAD, CREATING A “SECOND CRATER” WHEN IT SLAMMED INTO THE MOON.

BUT CHINA IS DISPUTING WHAT THE U.S. RESEARCH TEAM FOUND, SAYING IT WASN’T THEIR SPACECRAFT THAT CAUSED THE CRATERS.

AMERICAN SCIENTISTS SAY IT WAS A BOOSTER THAT CAME OFF A CHINESE ROCKET THAT WENT TUMBLING SLOWLY TOWARD THE MOON. THEY FOUND THE BOOSTER CREATED ONE CRATER, AND A SECOND CRATER WAS FORMED BY A MYSTERIOUS OBJECT ATTACHED TO THE BOOSTER.

THE SCIENTISTS SAY THEY’LL LIKELY NEVER KNOW WHAT THAT SECOND DEVICE WAS SINCE CHINA’S NATIONAL SPACE ADMINISTRATION SAYS THEY’VE GOT IT ALL WRONG — THAT THE OBJECT WASN’T OF CHINESE ORIGIN.

THE RESEARCH TEAM SAYS THEY HAVE “DEFINITIVE PROOF” THE SPACE JUNK THAT HIT THE MOON WAS A CHINESE BOOSTER FROM A ROCKET CHINA SENT INTO ORBIT IN 20-14. 

CHINA SAYS THE ROCKET BOOSTER “BURNED UP UPON RE-ENTRY TO EARTH.” THE U.S. SPACE COMMAND SAYS – THAT’S NOT TRUE. AND NOW SPECULATION IS CENTERED ON WHAT THE ATTACHED OBJECT WAS THAT CREATED THAT SECOND CRATER.

THE LEAD AUTHOR OF THE STUDY SAID

“Something that’s been in space as long as this is subjected to forces from the Earth’s and the Moon’s gravity and the light from the sun…it’s impact was almost straight down, and to get those two craters of about the same size, you need two roughly equal masses that are apart from each other.

THE AUTHOR SAYS THE ROCKET BODY IS A BIG EMPTY SHELL ON ONE END AND A HEAVY ENGINE ON THE OTHER, SO THEY CONCLUDED A SECOND OBJECT HAD TO HAVE BEEN ON THE OTHER END OF EQUAL WEIGHT GIVEN ITS MOTIONS THROUGH SPACE.

THE STUDY’S OTHER CONCLUSION – A WARNING. AS SPACE EXPLORATION BOOMS, COUNTRIES SHOULD BE MORE COGNIZANT OF ITS SPACE DEBRIS, WHERE IT GOES – AND THE IMPACT OF ITS LANDING.