Do scientists ever see evidence of recent meteor strikes on the moon?
Presumably they hit the surface all the time, especially during meteor showers.
With the aid of a telescope, are any of them ever large enough to see
evidence of the strike and the crater left behind?

Hello mccook,

It seems that until 1999, there had been no confirmed sightings of
meteor particles hitting the lunar surface.  But in 1999 and again in
2001, observers recorded strikes on the moon during the Leonid meteor
shower.

"Meteoroids Hitting Moon Caught On Film", by Maia Weinstock (21 June 2000)
Space.com
http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/solarsystem/leonids_crash_000621.html

"Lunar Leonids 2000" (October 26, 2000)
Science @ NASA
http://www.southpole.com/headlines/y2000/ast26oct_1.htm

"Explosions on the Moon" (November 30, 2001)
Science @ NASA
http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2001/ast30nov_1.htm

As indicated by the end of the first article, the craters are likely
too small to see from the Earth.  A lunar orbiter might be needed to
record such craters in the future.

- justaskscott


Search terms used, in various combinations, on Google:

meteor(s)
meteorite(s)
moon
leonid(s)