February 14th, Space X plans to launch from Kennedy Space Center, located in Florida, the first lunar lander built by Intuitive Machines. It would be the second attempt by the United States in a few weeks to return to the lunar surface with robotic missions after the end of the Apollo program half a century ago.
He first try It was January 8th, the day the lander was launched Astrobotic Peregrine FalconHowever The ship’s loss of fuel prevented it from reaching its destination., then scheduled for February 23rd. It would be the first American spacecraft to land on the moon since 1972.
Both missions are part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Cargo Services (CLPS) initiative, under which it contracts with private companies to build and launch the spacecraft.
Intuitive Machines’ first flight, IM-1, will use the company’s Nova-C lunar lander and is scheduled to land in the moon’s south polar region on February 22, NASA reports.
This flight will take time 6 NASA payloads The focus is on cloud-surface interactions, space weather-lunar surface interactions, radio astronomy, precision landing technologies, and a communications and navigation hub for future autonomous navigation technologies.