New lunar crater is largest recent impact ever found
The crater probably formed in spring 2024 and has a diameter of 222 metres.
Researchers have identified a new impact crater on the Moon measuring 222 metres across. The study calls it the largest recent impact crater found so far in the Solar System.
The crater was discovered by comparing old and new images of the same area of the Moon. A routine check of camera images revealed a difference in autumn 2025. According to the researchers, the crater formed in spring 2024.
The research has been published in a scientific journal and is therefore peer-reviewed. That means fellow specialists have assessed the method and supporting evidence. It does not mean that every uncertainty has disappeared: the precise characteristics of the impact and the object that caused the crater remain under analysis.
The crater is approximately 222 metres across. The researchers call it the largest recent impact crater found in the Solar System. That is different from the largest crater ever: the Moon contains much older impact basins thousands of kilometres across.
The discovery is particularly important because such recent impacts help researchers test models of impact frequency. The study estimates that an event of this size occurs approximately once every 132 years according to current models. That is a model result, not a direct measurement of a fixed cosmic clock.
Because the Moon has no dense atmosphere and virtually no active erosion, new impacts remain visible. Nevertheless, they are not easy to find. Repeated images taken under comparable conditions are needed so that researchers can distinguish a new scar from differences in lighting.
The discovery therefore provides no indication of a sudden increase in the impact risk to Earth. It mainly shows how much information emerges when space agencies reanalyse archive images. The researchers describe it as a rare event, not a cosmic breakthrough.
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The dimensions, dating and scientific status were checked directly against the publication and independent reporting. The text explicitly distinguishes between the largest recent crater and the largest craters ever.
- confirmed The new crater has a diameter of 222 metres. — Mentioned in the publication registered through PubMed. source
- confirmed The crater formed in spring 2024. — The study dates its formation to spring 2024. source
- confirmed It is the largest recent impact crater found in the Solar System. — This is the wording used by the study and independent reporting. source
- confirmed Current models arrive at approximately one event every 132 years. — The frequency estimate appears in the study’s summary. source
- confirmed The study is peer-reviewed. — The publication appears in a scientific journal and is indexed in PubMed. source
Editor's note
The discovery comes from a peer-reviewed publication. The term largest refers to recent impact craters, not all craters in the Moon’s history.Sources
- A new 222-m diameter lunar crater — PubMed
- NASA spacecraft discovers a huge new crater on the moon — Associated Press
- A NASA spacecraft just found a giant new crater on the moon — Space.com
More on this in Dutch media
- AD — „maan inslagkrater”
- de Volkskrant — „maan inslagkrater”
- RTL Nieuws — „maan inslagkrater”