NASA finds May 2024 lunar crater, biggest in recent history

Technology Sep 17, 2026

NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter spotted a massive new crater, 728 feet wide and 141 feet deep, created by an impact in May 2024.

It's the biggest fresh crater scientists have seen in recent history, and these kinds of impacts only happen about once every 132 years.

Discoveries like this help researchers understand how the Moon's surface changes over time.

Moon crater named for Thomas McGetchin

The crater is named after the late Thomas McGetchin, a former director of Houston's Lunar and Planetary Institute.

The impact didn't just leave a hole: it churned the lunar surface for more than 106km (100km) and created a 4-mile-wide "cold spot."

Mark Robinson says, "That information will help engineers harden structures so one won't have to worry about damage, or maybe worry less."