Meteor Shower Leaves Intriguing Marks on the Moon’s Surface

On the night of December 15, three meteoroids almost simultaneously crashed into the surface of the Moon-all within less than an hour. Japanese amateur astronomer Daichi Fujii recorded three bright flashes on the unlit side of the Moon at 4:35:55, 4:58:20, and 5:33:08 local time. Other astronomy enthusiasts confirmed these observations, allowing the interpretation of events as the impact of small meteoroids with a diameter of less than one meter with high confidence.

This rare series of impacts is associated with the peak activity of the Geminids meteor shower-one of the most powerful and stable annual showers. According to three independent observation networks, during the night of December 13 to 14, maximum activity reached between 120 and 150 meteors per hour. Visual observations yielded a Zenithal Hourly Rate (ZHR) of about 125, and global video networks recorded values up to 130.

The Moon, unlike Earth, almost lacks an atmosphere, so even small meteoroids do not burn up but directly collide with the surface, causing brief flashes of light. Such events are especially noticeable on the night side of the Moon during intense meteor showers. The series of three recorded impacts in such a short time is a rare and vivid example of how meteor showers affect not only Earth’s sky but also the nearest cosmic environment of our planet.