CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Landing a spacecraft on the moon has long been a series of hits and misses. The latest casualty came this week after Intuitive Machines put another lander sideways on the moon through a NASA-sponsored program. Within 24 hours, the lander’s batteries were dead and the mission was over.
President Trump set the U.S. on a path to sending astronauts back to the lunar surface during his first term. Lately he has expressed more interest in Mars.
During the Chandra’s Surface Thermophysical Experiment (ChaSTE), the spacecraft took the first measurements of this kind since those taken by the Apollo missions over half a century ago. While Apollo landed near the moon’s equator, Chandrayaan touched down at a latitude of 69 degrees north—well into the moon’s previously unexplored polar regions.
The first astronauts preparing to fly to the moon in more than 50 years want your help identifying their "moon mascot." NASA's Artemis II crew is seeking an original idea for their zero-g indicator.
The striking X mark on the moon, which requires a certain amount of luck to be spotted, will be visible for around four hours tonight.
The Intuitive Machines Athena lander mission to the moon has officially been declared "dead" after landing on its side in a crater where it is unable to generate sufficient power for the planned mission.