The Odysseus moon mission encountered unforeseen issues shortly before landing but managed to reach the lunar surface successfully.
The spacecraft, named Odysseus or “Odie,” confirmed that mission control received signals from the lunar surface quickly after landing. However, it took two hours for the spacecraft to be in an upright position and begin transmitting data.
Intuitive Machines is currently processing images from Odysseus’ cameras but has not released any pictures from the landing yet. The spacecraft is the first commercial spacecraft to achieve a soft landing on the moon and the first US-made vehicle to land on the lunar surface since the Apollo mission concluded over five decades ago.
Intuitive Machines’ principal customer, NASA, is interested in this project to explore the moon using robotic explorers made by private contractors before sending astronauts there as part of the Artemis program.
The IM-1 mission is part of a recent surge in worldwide efforts to explore the moon, with China, India, and Japan achieving their first successful landings in the past six months. The Odysseus lander, which is the size of a phone booth, traveled around 620,370 miles (1 million kilometers) in space over the previous week before entering lunar orbit on Wednesday morning. Intuitive machines were designed to land Odysseus near Malapert A, an impact crater located near the moon’s south pole, known for its hazardous and stony landscape.
Aside from NASA’s lidar payload, five other pieces of scientific equipment from the space agency were included on Odysseus as part of Intuitive Machines’ contract with NASA, which is worth up to $118 million. The historic Odysseus moon mission encountered unforeseen issues shortly before landing but was able to reach the lunar surface successfully with the assistance of sophisticated automated systems. The spacecraft, often referred to as Odysseus or “Odie,” confirmed that mission control received signals from the lunar surface soon after landing.
However, it took two hours for the spacecraft to be in an upright position and begin transmitting data. Intuitive Machines is currently processing images from Odysseus’ cameras but has not released any pictures from the landing. The spacecraft is the first commercial spacecraft to achieve a soft landing on the moon and the first US-made vehicle to land on the lunar surface since the Apollo mission concluded over five decades ago. NASA is interested in this mission, which is important to intuitive machines. The goal is to explore the moon using robotic explorers created by private companies before astronauts are sent there as part of the Artemis program. The IM-1 mission is part of a recent global competition to reach the moon, with China, India, and Japan achieving their maiden landings in the last six months. The Odysseus lander, which is the size of a phone booth, traveled around 620,370 miles (1 million kilometers) in space over the previous week before entering lunar orbit on Wednesday morning.
Intuitive machines were designed to land Odysseus near Malapert A, an impact crater located near the moon’s south pole, known for its hazardous and stony landscape. Aside from NASA’s lidar payload, five other pieces of scientific equipment from the space agency were included on Odysseus as part of Intuitive Machines’ contract with NASA, which is worth up to $118 million.