Daichi Fujii, curator of the Hiratsuka City Museum, used cameras to record the event. The meteorite struck near the Ideler L crater, situated northwest of Pitiscus crater, as reported by Fujii. The impact occurred on February 23rd at 20:14:30.8 Japan Standard Time (7:14 a.m. EST or 1114 GMT).
Meteors travel at an average speed of about 30,000 mph (48,280 kph), or 8.3 miles per second (13.4 km/s), generating a bright visible light and intense heat when they collide with celestial bodies. When they occur during lunar nighttime facing Earth and are large enough, they produce a visible flash on the lunar surface, as observed in this instance.
The newly formed crater caused by the meteorite impact could be around 39 feet (12 meters) in diameter, and its image could eventually be captured by NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter or India's Chandrayaan 2 lunar probe, according to Fujii. Understanding the impact rate on the moon is of significant interest to scientists as space agencies worldwide prepare to send astronauts back to the moon.
The moon's lack of a dense exosphere similar to Earth means it is more vulnerable to meteorite impacts, leading to its characteristic pockmarked surface. While meteors hitting the moon are relatively common, they typically burn up completely in Earth's atmosphere.