Bam! Japanese astronomers have captured footage of a meteorite colliding with the moon.

A meteorite is a solid piece of debris from an object that entered Earth's atmosphere and survived impact with the ground, such as a comet or asteroid. These objects travel at incredible speeds, frequently exceeding 30,000 mph (48,280 kph), or 8.3 miles per second (13.4 km/s).The air resistance forces them to heat up when they hit the atmosphere, producing a visible streak of light known as a meteor or shooting star. The majority of meteorites are small and do not pose a threat to humans, but larger objects can inflict severe damage when they collide. Meteoritological research is critical for understanding the composition and history of our solar system.

A meteorite striking the moon caused a short flash on its nightside, which a Japanese astronomer was able to photograph.                  With cameras positioned to track the moon, Hiratsuka City Museum curator Daichi Fujii captured the incident on film.

The flash occurred on February 23 at 20:14:30.8 Japan Standard Time (7:14 a.m. EST, or 1114 GMT). According to Fujii, the meteorite looks to have struck close to Ideler L crater, which is located somewhat to the northwest of Pitiscus crater.

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New Crater on the Moon

According to Fujii, the freshly formed crater may have a diameter of about 12 metres (39 feet) and could one day be photographed by either Chandrayaan 2 or NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter.

Why Meteor hitting Moon is Different from Earth?

Meteors hit the Earth every day, but most of them burn up entirely as they come into contact with the atmosphere. Yet, the moon's exosphere is so thin that meteorites that would not otherwise reach Earth's surface frequently impact it, giving it the appearance of being covered with craters. These rocks continually batter the lunar surface, sometimes reducing it to minute particles known as lunar soil.

Since the United States and other countries are getting ready to send astronauts to the moon, recording these events is also important from a scientific standpoint since it helps researchers understand how quickly impacts occur on the lunar surface.