NASA finds a 'once in a century' lunar crater, bigger than the Roman Colosseum

We and our partners do the following data processing based on your consent: store and/or access information on a device, personalised advertising and content, advertising and content measurement, audience research and services development NASA finds a 'once-in-a-century' lunar crater, bigger than the Roman Colosseum Scientists have discovered a crater on the moon that's bigger than the Roman Colosseum and is the result of a powerful impact two years ago that initially went undetected. This series of photographs taken by NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter shows the same area of the lunar surface before and after the formation of a crater that was recently discovered in May 2024. NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center A researcher at NASA has found a massive, recently-formed crater on the Moon, a rare occurrence that only happens "once in a century or even longer," according to scientists.

The crater, dubbed "McGetchin," measures 730 feet (222 meters) wide, NASA said in a blog post. It is believed to have been created in the spring of 2024 from a comet or asteroid colliding with the Moon, with researchers describing the object that caused it to be the size of a building three-to-six stories high. "Scientists estimate that an impact of this magnitude happens on the Moon about once in a century or even longer," NASA said in the blog post.

To display this content from X (Twitter), you must enable advertisement tracking and audience measurement. Such a large-scale event is estimated to occur only once every 132 years, researchers said, making this a treasure trove of information as NASA prepares to build a base for astronauts on the moon. Although the crater had been there for years, it was not discovered until Robert Wagner, a researcher with NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), noticed it in a new scan of the Moon's surface.

The crater appeared as a "large bright spot circled by a dark halo" by the LRO probe, which has been studying the Moon since 2009. A study published Wednesday in the journal Science Advances determined it was the largest new crater ever discovered in the solar system. While the Moon has numerous craters, many of which are far bigger than McGetchin, researching a crater's formation in real time can help build understanding of the Moon's geology.

This in turn could better prepare future crewed missions to the Moon, which are currently planned by both the United States and China. Unlike Earth, the Moon has virtually no atmospheric layer, so space debris does not slow down or burn up before colliding with the surface. Space telescope to burn in Earth's atmosphere after NASA rescue mission fails French astronaut Sophie Adenot completes second ISS mission spacewalk NASA launches Roman telescope to map 'a new atlas of the universe' 1. 1 ## NATO downs drone over Lithuania As it happened Europe 2. 2 ## US Space Force confirms weapons deployed in space for first time Americas 3. 3 ## EU chief calls for creation of ‘European Security Council’, backs partnership with Canada Europe 4. 4 ## Saudi Arabia vows to hit back ‘firmly’ after Houthi attacks As it happened Middle East 5. 5 ## Houthis report Saudi strikes as Riyadh accuses them of targeting Mecca As it happened Middle East 6. 6 ## NATO jets down drone over Lithuania as Russian ship fires flares at Danish helicopter Europe © 2026 Copyright France 24 - All rights reserved.

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