Recent reports have revealed that it was not Elon Musk's SpaceX, as previously stated in various sources, that will be responsible for creating a crater on the moon's surface. Instead, it is believed that a fragment of a rocket launched by China's space agency is likely to be the cause. Bill Gray, the creator of Project Pluto, a software used for astronomical calculations, disclosed last month that the upper stage of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket was on a trajectory that could potentially intersect with the moon's path. This rocket had launched the Deep Space Climate Observatory for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in 2015. Gray had been monitoring this rocket fragment for years, and in early January, it came within 6,000 miles of the moon's surface, with the moon's gravity causing it to veer towards a potential crash on a subsequent orbit. Reports from amateur astronomers who witnessed the object passing by Earth once again confirmed the imminent collision inside Hertzsprung, a large crater measuring 315 miles across. However, an email received on Saturday from Jon Giorgini, an engineer at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California, provided new information. Giorgini manages Horizons, an online database containing data on nearly 1.2 million objects in the solar system, including around 200 spacecraft. After a user of Horizons inquired about the object's connection to the DSCOVR rocket, Giorgini decided to investigate further. He discovered that the orbit did not match the trajectory of DSCOVR and reached out to Gray. Gray initially believed he was correct but decided to review his old emails to recall when the object was first observed in March 2015, approximately a month after DSCOVR was launched. Typically, newly spotted objects in the sky are assumed to be asteroids, including this one, which was labeled as WE0913A. It was discovered that WE0913A was in orbit around Earth, not the sun, indicating it likely originated from Earth. Gray suggested it could be part of the rocket that launched DSCOVR, and further data showed that WE0913A passed the moon two days after the DSCOVR launch, confirming this theory. Gray realized his mistake in assuming DSCOVR was headed towards the moon to use its gravity to reach its final destination, but Giorgini clarified that DSCOVR was actually launched on a direct path that did not involve passing the moon. Gray stated that he regretted not reviewing the information before making his January announcement. After Jon Giorgini brought it to his attention, he realized his mistake. SpaceX did not comment on the issue, but it is likely that they have not been monitoring WE0913A, as the second stage of a Falcon 9 is typically burned up in the atmosphere. In this instance, the rocket needed all its propellant to deliver DSCOVR to its intended location. However, the second stage, without power or control, was in an orbit that was not likely to pose a threat to any satellites, and it is probable that people did not monitor its movements. Gray expressed the desire for transparency from those responsible for putting these boosters into high orbits, suggesting that they should publicly disclose information about what they are launching and where it is headed instead of leaving it to individuals like himself to investigate. Despite this, Gray was uncertain about the identity of the object in question, prompting him to investigate other recent launches, particularly those directed towards the moon, but found limited information in that category. The leading candidate was a Long March 3C rocket that launched China's Chang'e-5 T1 spacecraft on October 23, 2014. The spacecraft orbited the moon and returned to Earth, releasing a small return capsule that landed in Mongolia. This test was a precursor to the successful Chang'e-5 mission in 2020, which collected moon rocks and dust for study on Earth. Analysis of the orbit of WE0913A indicated a close lunar flyby on October 28, five days after the Chinese launch. Orbital data from a cubesat attached to the rocket's third stage closely matched that of WE0913A, according to Gray. "It's the type of case that could likely result in a conviction if taken to a jury," noted Christophe Demeautis, an amateur astronomer from northeast France, regarding the object predicted to strike the moon. Recent observations have adjusted the estimated time and location of the impact slightly. The crash is still expected to happen around 7:26 am Eastern time, but it will be on the far side of the moon, out of view from Earth's telescopes and satellites. The location of the Falcon 9 part, specifically the DSCOVR second stage, is still being determined. It is most likely that the object ended up orbiting the sun rather than the Earth, and it may still be out there, making it currently out of view. There have been instances of pieces of old rockets returning, such as in 2020 when a mystery object was discovered to be part of a rocket launched in 1966 for NASA's Surveyor missions to the moon.