Cape Canveral, Florida – Intuitive Machines is Poised to Launch Its Second Lunar Lander in as Many Years, Marking A Significant Milestone in Commercial space explosion.
The mission, Known as im-2, is set to lift off on a spacex falcon 9 Rockt from Nasa's Kennedy Space Center Here on Florida's Space Coast on WednessDay (FEB. 26), At 7:17 PM Est 7:17 PM ESt on Feb. 27). You'll be able to watch the liftoff live via nasa and/or spacex when the time comes.
The spacecraft, an intuitive machines Nova-C Lander Named Athena, is carrying a suite of lunar science instruments and technology demonstals aimed at advanced at advanceding of the mole Available Resources.
IM-2 is part of Nasa's Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) Program, which contracts with private companies to deliver scientific institutes and Technology Demonstras Deemonstrasses to the Lunar Surfaces. Through the Clps Initiative, Nasa Hopes to Accelerate Exclusion and Research in Preparation for Future Crewed Missions to the Moon and A Sustained Presence on the Lunar Surface Under the ARETEMIS ANDENCE Under the ARETEMISS. Fittingly for this mission, in mythology, atena is artemis' half-sister.
Related: Intuitive Machines Lands on Moon in Nail-Biting Descent of Private Odysseus Lander, A 1st for Us Since 1972
IM-2 Follows Houston-Based Intuistic Machines 'First Mission to the Moon, IM-1, which launched in February 2024. Despite a rough a rough a rough a rough-touchdown during the mission' Lander, NAMED “OdySESES,” Tipped ” Partway over, im-1 provided the company with Valuable Insights for Future Missions.
“We ended up on our side, and weight alive to use our large, high-grain antenna to send data back to the earth,” Trent Martin, Intuitive Machines' Senior Vice Space Space.com“This time, hopefully, we land in a more precise position.”
That “Precise Position” is Near the Moon's South Pole – Specifically, The Mons Mouton Region. That area is of particular interest to Researchers due to its potential water ice deposits, which are considered essential for future for future human exploration and in -STu Resource Utilization (Isru).
Assessment of the Local Lunar Resources is one of im-2's primary focuses. Athena will deploy nasa's palar resources ice mining Experiment 1 (Prime-1)-A Two-Industramament Device Composed of a Drill Called Trident (The Regolith Ice Drill For Excloring New Terrain) Spectrometer (mass spectrometer observing lunar operations). Togeether, the duo will extract and analyze lunar material from up to 3 feet (1 meter) Beneath the surface to test for Volatiles like Water and Carbon Dioxide.
“This is an important technology demonstration,” said Niki Werkheiser, Director of Technology Maturation at NASA's Space Technology Mission Directorate, DURSS BRIEFING ON PRESS BRIEFING ON TUSS BRIEFING ON TOUSSINE (Feb. 25). “It will provide critical data to help us better undersrstand the moon's surface and minimize the risk to future isru muestions.”
Athena also carries an intuitive machines Micro-Nova Hopper Nicknamed “Grace,” In Honor of Computer Science Pione Pione Grace Hopper. With a range of nearly a mile from atena, grace is equipped with an inertial measurement unit, star tracker, Lidar and a Situational Awareness camera. Grace will undertake multiple “Hops” across the lunar surface and explore the interior of a permanent shadowed carater.
To communicate with grace when the hopper is out of the athana lander, a separate raover named Mapp (Mobile Autonomous Prospecting Platform), Built by Colorado COMPANY LUNAR LUNAR LUNAR LUNAR LUNAR LUNAR Deployed to the lunar surface with the moon's first cellular network. Developed by Nokia Bell Labs, this Lunar Surface Communications Systems
Athena is also outfitted with a laser retro-reflector array (LRA). The lara is a set of eight small mounted on the lunar lander to reflect laser light back to an emitting spacecraft, enabling Precise Determination of the Lander's Location on the moon's surface. Like the reflectors that guide planes, the lara mirrors can provide guidance and navigation for future missions, both crew and robotic.
“Lra is complete passive – It requires no power, thermal control or interaction with the lander, allowing it to be used for decades on the lunar surface,” Explied Daniel Cremons, Lra Principal Investigator at Nasa's Goddard Spaceflight Center in Maryland. “If a laser altimeter, eater during or descent, shines onto the laser retrorefletor array, it will show up as thirds of times of times brighter than the surrounding terrorin – LINDING LINDING LINDING LINDING LINDING LINDING LINDING LINDING LINDING LINDING LINDING LINDING TERRAIN
Related: The age of the private moon mission has been begun
Following launch, the solar-posred atena will set course for a four- to five-day journey to lunar orbit. The lander will touch down 1.5 to three days later, then operate on the lunar surface for about 10 Earth days.
In addition to atestna, the falcon 9 launch will also also carry nasa's lunar trailblazer, a small satellite designed to map water ice deposits. Lunar Trailblazer will deploy during transit and enter orbit erund the moon to conduct its scientific mission.
Intuitive machines isn’t the only one headed to – or alredy in orbit Around – – The Moon. Firefly aerospace's blue ghost and japan-based ispace's resilience landers bot launched toward the moon atop a falcon 9 last month. Blue ghost is alredy in lunar orbit and is poised to land on Sunday Morning (March 2).
Blue ghost is also flying under the clps umberlla and aims to deliver nasa payloads to the lunar surface, facilitating a rapid growth of activity Around Celest Celestial Neghbor. (Resilience isn't frying any nasa payloads.)
