Could a meteorite land on the Moon while astronauts are there?
Tiny ones hit the Moon all the time, and bigger ones occasionally. The chance of one hitting an astronaut is very small, but future Moon bases will need protection.
The Moon has no air to burn up space rocks, so every bit of space dust heading towards it hits the ground. That means the Moon is being hit all the time, mostly by tiny particles smaller than grains of sand.
Small impacts. Tiny dust grains hit the Moon constantly. They are so small that they would barely scratch a spacesuit, though they can slowly wear down surfaces over years. Spacesuits have tough outer layers to protect against them.
Bigger impacts. Larger rocks, a few centimetres to metres across, hit less often, but scientists have seen flashes of light from impacts on the Moon using telescopes on Earth. In 2013, a rock about the size of a small boulder hit the Moon, making a crater about 18 metres wide.
Apollo astronauts. The Apollo astronauts spent only a few days on the Moon, so the chance of being hit by anything big was extremely small. None were hurt by meteoroids.
Future bases. In the future, people may live on the Moon for months. Engineers are planning ways to protect them, such as covering bases with lunar soil, building underground or using strong shields. Scientists also watch meteor shower forecasts, because showers bring more dust.
So, while the Moon is a busy target, astronauts are well protected, and the chance of a big hit is very low.