NASA discovers the largest fresh impact crater on the Moon in decades
NASA identified a new lunar crater 221 m wide and 41 m deep, formed by a recent asteroid impact and named McGretchin.
NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter captured images that exposed a new impact crater on the Moon, 221 meters in diameter and 41 meters deep. Image analyst Robert Wagner spotted the formation while reviewing updated lunar maps, prompting a comparison with older photographs that dated the impact to sometime between April and May 2025. The crater, dubbed McGretchin in honor of the late Lunar and Planetary Institute director Tom McGretchin, is the biggest fresh crater ever recorded in the solar system.
Scientists estimate the impactor was roughly the size of a three-story building. Measurements show the area within about 6 kilometers of the crater is a few degrees cooler than surrounding regions, likely because the loose ejecta retains heat less efficiently than solid lunar regolith. The discovery adds to the LRO’s catalog of thousands of impact sites, but none have matched this crater’s size.
How this was covered
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Why it matters
The find provides fresh data on lunar impacts and surface evolution, informing future exploration and hazard assessment.
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