A private lunar lander is expected to cease operations Tuesday, its mission cut short after landing sideways near the south pole of the moon.

Intuitive Machines, the Houston company that built and flew the spacecraft, said Monday it will continue to collect data until sunlight no longer shines on the solar panels. Based on the position of Earth and the moon, officials expect that to happen Tuesday morning. That’s two to three days short of what NASA and other customers had been counting on.

The lander, named Odysseus, is the first U.S. spacecraft to land on the moon in more than 50 years, carrying experiments for NASA, the main sponsor. But it came in too fast last Thursday and the foot of one of its six legs caught on the surface, causing it to tumble over, according to company officials.

Based on photos from NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter flying overhead, Odysseus landed within a mile or so (1.5 kilometers) of its intended target near the Malapert A crater, just 185 miles or so (300 kilometers) from the moon’s south pole.

  • SuperIce@lemmy.worldEnglish
    491·
    9 months ago

    If I had a nickel for every time a lunar lander has landed on its side this year, I’d have two nickels, which isn’t a lot, but it’s weird that it happened twice.

  • phillaholic@lemm.ee
    18·
    9 months ago

    JPL doesn’t get enough credit. We just taken for granted that most NASA missions succeed. Space is incredibly difficult.

    • ringwraithfish@startrek.website
      5·
      9 months ago

      You’re looking at it wrong. This is an emergency supply drop that will be found 100 years from now. A moon base will be in critical need of a part that can’t get delivered on time from Earth and someone miraculously versed on the engineering specs of this particular lander will have a flash of insight that the one component they need to save everyone happens to already be on the moon.

      Or so that’s what I gather will happen based on most sci-fi shows/movies.