Moving a step closer to lunar exploration, US-based private space company Intuitive Machines successfully launched its Athena Moon lander on Wednesday aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. The launch took place from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, with the lander set to attempt a lunar touchdown on March 6.
SpaceX shared visuals of the mission, confirming its successful deployment.
This marks Intuitive Machines’ second attempt at a Moon landing under its IM-2 mission, following its first mission last year, which failed due to a maneuvering issue during landing.
Athena’s Mission Objectives
Athena aims to land in the Mons Mouton region, located about 160 kilometers from the Moon’s south pole. This highland terrain is of particular interest for lunar exploration.
Once on the surface, Athena will deploy multiple rovers, including Intuitive Machines’ Micro Nova Hopper, named Grace. The company stated that Grace will “explore the local area” and conduct multiple flights to gather scientific data.
A key highlight of the mission is exploring a small, permanently shadowed crater located 400 meters from the landing site—a first in lunar exploration history.
Additionally, Athena is expected to observe a lunar eclipse on March 14 if the landing is successful. During this event, the Moon, Earth, and Sun will align, with Earth casting a shadow over the Moon. While observers on Earth will see the Moon disappear, Athena will witness “the Sun sweep from right to left on the horizon, passing behind Earth before reappearing,” the company explained.
Learning from Past Mistakes
Comparing IM-2 with its predecessor, Intuitive Machines’ Senior Vice President of Spacecraft, Trent Martin, acknowledged that this mission “is much more complex than our first mission.”
“The most critical piece is making sure that we land upright so that we can get on to the science and technology demonstrations that we need to do on the surface of the Moon,” Martin added, as reported by Reuters.
The launch comes amid increased lunar exploration efforts. Currently, Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost lander and Japan’s ispace lander are also heading toward the Moon. Firefly’s lander is scheduled to attempt a touchdown on Sunday, while ispace’s mission is set to land in the coming months.
After the first mission’s hard touchdown in February 2024, where the Odysseus lander tipped over due to a broken leg, scientists at Intuitive Machines have made improvements to prevent similar issues.
Martin emphasized that the team has worked on these challenges, but “you never know what could happen.”
