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U.S. makes historic moon landing after half a century

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The United States has achieved its first touchdown on the lunar surface in over five decades, marking the inaugural private sector-led mission to accomplish such a feat.

The spacecraft, named ‘Odysseus’ and built by Texas-based company Intuitive Machines, successfully landed near the moon’s south pole on Thursday.

The landing, heralded by NASA and featuring several research instruments onboard, signifies a crucial advancement in the agency’s endeavour to deploy commercially operated spacecraft for scientific missions on the moon. This achievement precedes NASA’s planned return of astronauts to the lunar surface later in the decade.

However, the excitement surrounding the touchdown was momentarily tempered by initial communication challenges following the landing, raising concerns about the spacecraft’s condition.

The uncrewed six-legged robot lander touched down at approximately 6:23 p.m. EST (2323 GMT) following a tense final approach and descent. An issue with the spacecraft’s autonomous navigation system emerged during this critical phase, prompting ground engineers to implement a last-minute, untested solution.

Following an anticipated radio blackout, efforts to re-establish communication with the spacecraft were met with a faint signal, confirming the successful landing but leaving mission control uncertain about its precise condition and orientation.

Intuitive Machines’ mission director, Tim Crain, conveyed the momentous achievement to the operations centre amidst the uncertainty.

“Our equipment is on the surface of the moon, and we are transmitting, so congratulations, IM team,” Intuitive Machines mission director Tim Crain was heard telling the operations center. “We’ll see what more we can get from that.”

Also Read: Intuitive Machines Launches Historic U.S. Moon Lander After 50 Years

Subsequent updates indicated that the lander was upright and beginning to transmit data, albeit with a weak signal potentially attributed to its proximity to a crater wall or other obstructions.

Later in the evening, the company posted a message on the social media platform X saying flight controllers “have confirmed Odysseus is upright and starting to send data.”

Despite these challenges, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson lauded the achievement as a triumph, emphasizing the significance of Odysseus’ landing near the moon’s south pole.

The successful landing represents the first controlled descent to the lunar surface by a U.S. spacecraft since the Apollo 17 mission in 1972. It also marks the debut of a “soft landing” on the moon by a commercially manufactured and operated vehicle under NASA’s Artemis lunar program.

Odysseus carries a suite of scientific instruments and technology demonstrations aimed at studying various aspects of the lunar environment, including space weather interactions and radio astronomy. The mission underscores NASA’s commitment to long-term lunar exploration and serves as a stepping stone for future human missions to Mars.

While the achievement marks a significant milestone for NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program, recent setbacks in the private sector highlight the inherent risks associated with relying on smaller, less experienced ventures for lunar missions.

Intuitive Machines, co-founded by former NASA official Stephen Altemus, spearheaded the mission, underscoring the growing role of private companies in advancing space exploration endeavours.

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