Contrary to previous reports, it is not Elon Musk's SpaceX that is expected to create a crater on the moon's surface, but rather a piece of a rocket launched by China's space agency. Bill Gray, creator of Project Pluto, revealed that the upper stage of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket was on a trajectory that would intersect with the moon's path. This rocket had launched the Deep Space Climate Observatory for NOAA in February 2015. Gray had been monitoring this rocket part for years, and in January it passed near the moon's surface, potentially leading to a crash on a subsequent orbit. Reports from amateur astronomers who witnessed the object passing by Earth once again confirmed that it was heading towards an impact within the Hertzsprung crater. However, a new development arose when Jon Giorgini, an engineer at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, sent an email on Saturday. Giorgini, who manages the Horizons online database that provides information on the locations and orbits of nearly 1.2 million objects in the solar system, including around 200 spacecraft, decided to investigate the object in question after a user inquired about its connection to the DSCOVR rocket. He discovered that the orbit did not match the trajectory of DSCOVR and reached out to Gray. Gray recalled his initial confidence in his calculations but decided to review his old emails to refresh his memory about when the object was first observed in March 2015, shortly after DSCOVR's launch. Typically, new objects spotted in the sky are assumed to be asteroids, and the same assumption was made for this object, which was designated as WE0913A. However, it was discovered that WE0913A was actually orbiting Earth, not the sun, suggesting it likely originated from Earth. Gray suggested it could be a part of the rocket that launched DSCOVR, and further data confirmed that WE0913A passed the moon two days after DSCOVR was launched, supporting this theory. Gray now understands his mistake in assuming DSCOVR was headed towards the moon to use its gravity to reach its final destination, as Giorgini clarified that DSCOVR was launched on a direct path that did not involve passing the moon. Gray admitted that he regretted not reviewing something before making an announcement in January. After Jon Giorgini brought it to his attention, Gray realized he had made a mistake. SpaceX did not comment on whether WE0913A was their rocket stage, but it is likely they were not tracking it. Typically, the second stage of a Falcon 9 rocket is burned up in the atmosphere, but in this instance, all propellant was needed to deliver DSCOVR to its destination. However, the second stage, without power or control, was in an orbit that was not likely to pose a threat to any satellites, so it was probably not being monitored. Gray suggested that it would be helpful if the companies launching these boosters into high orbits would share information about what they are sending up there, rather than leaving it up to individuals like himself to investigate. Gray then began to investigate other recent launches, specifically focusing on those bound for the moon. He noted that there were not many launches in that category. The leading candidate for the mission was a Long March 3C rocket, which launched China's Chang'e-5 T1 spacecraft on October 23, 2014. This spacecraft circled the moon and returned to Earth, releasing a small return capsule that landed in Mongolia. This was a test for the Chang'e-5 mission in 2020, which successfully collected moon rocks and dust for study on Earth. A computer simulation of the orbit of WE0913A showed that it would have made a close pass by the moon on October 28, just five days after the Chinese launch. Additionally, orbital data from a cubesat attached to the rocket's third stage closely matched WE0913A, according to Gray. "It's a case that could potentially result in a conviction if taken to a jury," said Christophe Demeautis, an amateur astronomer from northeast France. Recent observations have slightly adjusted the timing and location of the predicted impact of the object on the moon, but it is still expected to occur at approximately 7:26 am Eastern time. However, since the impact will be on the far side of the moon, it will not be visible from Earth's telescopes and satellites. The search continues for the Falcon 9 part, with efforts focused on locating the DSCOVR second stage." It is most likely that the object ended up in orbit around the sun rather than the Earth, making it currently out of view. There have been instances of pieces of old rockets resurfacing, such as a mystery object discovered in 2020 that was part of a rocket launched in 1966 for NASA's Surveyor missions to the moon.