WASHINGTON: A private American company has scripted history by landing the first commercial spacecraft on the moon as well as the first US vehicle on the earth’s only natural satellite in more than 50 years, joining earlier feats by India, Russia, the US and China.
Built by Intuitive Machines, the lander — named Odysseus — touched down on the moon at around 6.23 pm ET on Thursday, making it the first American spacecraft on the moon since the Apollo 17 mission in 1972.
“Today, for the first time in half a century, America has returned to the moon,” Bill Nelson, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Administrator said after Intuitive Machines, a Houston-based company, landed its Odysseus robot near the lunar south pole.
The lander carries a bounty of NASA scientific instruments, “and bearing the dream of a new adventure in science, innovation and American leadership in space, well, all of that aced the landing of the lifetime,” Nelson said.
“What we can confirm, without a doubt, is our equipment is on the surface of the moon, and we are transmitting,” Flight Director and Chief Technology Officer Tim Crain announced amidst cheers among his colleagues and others across the country as there were some tense moments before the landing on the moon.
As the spacecraft made its final descent, mission controllers lost contact with it, as was expected to occur, NBC News reported.
“After troubleshooting communications, flight controllers have confirmed Odysseus is upright and starting to send data. Right now, we are working to downlink the first images from the lunar surface,” Intuitive Machines said, announcing the historic feat.
“I know this was a nail-biter, but we are on the surface, and we are transmitting. Welcome to the moon,” Intuitive Machines Chief Executive Officer Stephen Altemus said during the livestream.
The lander will have seven days before darkness descends on the landing site, preventing the spacecraft’s solar panels from gathering energy from sunlight and bringing freezing temperatures, ABC News reported.
In August last year, India made history as its moon mission Chandrayaan-3 became the first to land in the uncharted south pole of the earth’s only natural satellite and became the fourth country to master the technology of soft-landing on the Moon, propelling it into an elite group of nations.