Finding the Falcon 9 Crash Site on the Moon

Last week Elon Musk's SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket crashed into the Moon. You can view its estimated impact site on azmth Luna, an interactive 3D map of our nearest neighbour. Enter “Falcon 9” into the map's search box and the crash site is highlighted on the lunar surface, near the Einstein crater on the Moon's western limb.

The Falcon 9 crash is just one of 44 landing and impact sites mapped by azmth Luna. These range from the Soviet Union's Luna 2 in 1959 to the latest commercial lunar missions, with successful landings, failed missions and accidental impacts all represented. The resulting collection provides a comprehensive visual history of humanity's attempts to reach the Moon.

Labelled tracks also show spacecraft currently orbiting the Moon, calculated from real spacecraft ephemeris data. You can speed up the simulation clock to watch these orbital paths change. The map also includes a fascinating 'replay' option that allows you to explore the whole history of lunar exploration from 1958 onwards.

azmth Luna isn't simply a map of lunar missions. It is a live 3D model of the Moon, complete with the current phase, terminator and subtle libration - the slight wobble that changes which parts of the lunar surface we can see from Earth. That makes azmth Luna more than just an attractive 3D Moon map. It is a fascinating visual record of lunar exploration, combining historical missions, current spacecraft and future targets with a live astronomical simulation.