The module Odysseus of the private company Intuitive machines launched to the moon this Thursday from Florida in what is expected to be the first American moon landing in more than half a century since Apollo 17 in 1972.
The launch was postponed on Wednesday due to anomalies in the methane loading process, but now the starting signal has been given IM-1 mission It occurred at the new scheduled time, 1:05 a.m. (6:05 GMT), and is expected to land on the lunar surface within nine days.
The module, equipped with NASA instruments, is intended to enable the first “soft” landing by an American company on the lunar surface. The main goal of this mission is to bring these scientific instruments and technological demonstrations to the United States South pole of the moona region that is still unexplored except for the landing point of the Indian mission “Chandrayaan-3”.
Odysseus travels aboard one Falcon 9 rocket the company SpaceX which launched without any setbacks this morning from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in central Florida.
Once this lander is in orbit Nova C seriesequipped with a propulsion system powered by an environmentally friendly mixture of oxygen and methane, both liquids, will be separated from the rocket to head towards the moon.
Providing @Int_Machines IM-1 confirmed pic.twitter.com/daPrWFkVng
– SpaceX (@SpaceX) February 15, 2024
Operations for a week
After landing, operations there will be extended for some time seven days before the lunar night reaches the South Pole and renders Odysseus incapacitated.
Specifically, the landing will take place nearby Malapert massif, about 300 kilometers from the moon’s south pole, an area full of “uncertainty,” according to NASA experts. Researchers believe the area consists of lunar highland material, similar to the Apollo 16 landing site.
Illustration of the lunar lander or “lander” from the company Intuitive Machines. / Intuitive machines
This is the second mission of the initiative Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) NASA, after the failed Peregrine, and is also part of the Artemis program to return to the moon.
Last January, the module pilgrim of the company Astrobotic Technology was unable to land on the moon with NASA and other commercial cargoes due, among other things, to problems with the fuel supply.
According to Texas-based company Intuitive Machines, the mission aims to create one Economic platform to carry NASA scientific instruments and commercial payloads to the Moon, paving the way for a sustained human presence on this natural satellite and its surroundings.
In fact, the lunar landing site is one of 13 regions NASA is considering for the lunar landing Artemis III missionThis will be the first manned lunar landing mission of this program and the first manned flight of the SpaceX Starship HLS lander.
scientific instruments
One of the NASA instruments carried by Odysseus is this RFMGwhich enables much more accurate measurement of the level of a fuel tank, a crucial issue in future long-duration missions.
He also has an instrument, SCALPwith four cameras to capture audio and still images of the dust cloud generated by the lander motor as it begins its descent to the lunar surface until it shuts down.
NASA is also broadcasting four antennas and a radio reception system Low-frequency instruments to study the dynamic energy environment near the lunar surface and to determine how natural and man-made activities near the surface interact with scientific investigations.
This instrument, known as rollwill also detect radio emissions from the Sun, Jupiter and Earth, as well as dust striking the lunar surface.
Joins the team NDL, a descent and landing sensor based on light detection and distance measurement. This device works on the same principles as radar, but uses laser pulses emitted from three optical telescopes. It measures with high precision the speed and direction of the vehicle as well as the distance to the surface during descent until landing.
It also has one Collection of eight Retroreflectors (LRA) They enable precise laser ranging, measuring the distance between an orbiting or landing spacecraft and the lander’s reflector. This passive optical instrument will serve as a permanent location marker on the Moon for decades to come.
Lastly this LN-1 is a small flight hardware experiment the size of a small CubeSat that integrates navigation and communications capabilities for autonomous navigation to support future orbital and surface operations.
The Nova-C lunar landing module is housed in a Falcon 9 rocket. / EFE/SpaceX
Intuitive Machines has highlighted that the IM-1 mission represents a pivotal moment in the world Participation of private companies in the space race. According to the company, it represents a milestone in lunar exploration and revitalizes human interest in the moon after a decades-long hiatus.
The success of this mission “will lay the foundation for a thriving lunar economy, open up new opportunities for research, trade and exploration, and advance humanity’s dream of becoming a multiplanetary species,” the company emphasized.