Discarded Space X rocket set to crash into the moon

(NBC, KYMA) - A lunar crash landing will happen overnight as a big piece of an unmanned SpaceX rocket booster slams into the moon, kicking up a massive lunar dust cloud.

Astronomers are training their telescopes on the impact zone.

Four months after the world watched the Artemis-2 crew's spectacular lunar flyby, a piece of space junk is about to slam into the lunar surface at 5,400 miles per hour.

The massive rocket booster is getting pulled closer and closer to the moon.

At 2:34 a.m. Eastern time, that booster will crash into the moon, digging a massive new crater.

The expected explosion will send a plume of lunar dirt and dust as much as 60 miles above the lunar surface. Which astronomers around the world are eager to examine.

Orbiting probes will document the impact, with NASA hoping to learn more about what's under the lunar surface.

There are now more than 130 million pieces of space junk orbiting the earth. From pieces of rockets and dead satellites to straps, covers, hardware, bolts and nuts.

Last year, a Chinese spaceship with astronauts on board was hit by debris.

All of it, posing potential lethal risks to astronauts, other satellites, and humans on earth, as it all re-enter earth's atmosphere.