What would an asteroid impact feel like to someone standing on the moon?

On the Earth, with our atmosphere, even small objects entering the atmosphere such as Tunguska or Chelyabinsk can do devastating damage due to the shock-wave travelling through the air. People could be injured by the shockwave itself, which can knock down trees if strong enough, or be bombarded with flying debris (usually glass from broken windows). Most asteroids themselves won't even touch the surface before burning up from air resistance.

What would happen on the moon? Assuming this Wikipedia article about the properties of lunar craters is accurate, what would an astronaut in a pressurized spacesuit experience if standing at varying distances from the impact of a small meteroid? (I suppose "small" is a relative term here, so I'm going to say that the crater generated would be about a 20m radius). I'm using this video as a reference for the behavior of Moon dust after being hit by a crater.

What would happen if 3 very unlucky Moon colonists were standing:

1. A meter away from the impact point? (NOT being hit by the object, but very close)

   • In my head, I imagine they'd be tossed upwards with all the moon dust and probably die from whiplash or having their suit torn open by flying debris. Does that sound about right, or could the ground be blasted away from under their feet and leave them in midair?

2. At the edge of the future crater? (15-25 meters away)

   • According to the wiki article, the rim of the crater is where much of the ejected material builds up after gravity pulls it back down. Would astronaut #2 be hit by debris launched sideways from the impact, or be buried by falling dust shortly thereafter?

3. Dozens of meters away, close enough to see the impact?

   • In Earth's atmosphere, they'd be hit by the shockwave in air. On the moon, would there be an earthquake-style tremor or anything of the sort?

posted about 5 years ago

breathlessblizzard‭

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