The US makes a Tense Return to the Moon after Fifty Years

The US has made a comeback to the Moon after more than 50 years. At 6:24 pm EST, the robotic Odysseus landed autonomously on the lunar surface, followed by a tense 13-minute wait as radio communications were established with mission control.

The landing of the IM-1 mission today marks the United States’ first lunar lander mission since Apollo 17 in 1972. Additionally, it makes history as the maiden lunar landing achieved by a privately owned and operated spacecraft.

Tension Mounts in Mission Control as Odysseus Makes Autonomous Descent towards Lunar Surface

There was also considerable tension, particularly in Mission Control, following the recent unsuccessful Peregrine landing mission, which resulted in the craft burning up in Earth’s atmosphere. As the Nova-C class lander Odysseus, affectionately known as “Odie,” descended autonomously toward its landing site approximately 300 km (190 miles) from the Moon’s south pole, the atmosphere was palpably tense.

Part of the tension stemmed from the scheduled communications blackout during the landing phase, compounded by a technical glitch. During the eight-day journey to the Moon, the onboard landing navigation system encountered a malfunction. As a result, flight engineers had to improvise a software patch to link the lander’s system with NASA’s Navigation Doppler Lidar for Precise Velocity and Range Sensing (NDL) experiment, part of the commercial payload.

Mission Control Navigates Critical Moment as Odysseus’s Landing Becomes Essential

Consequently, what was initially intended as a demonstration of a new laser-guided landing navigation technique suddenly became critical. The suspense reached its peak two minutes after landing when the expected signal from Odysseus failed to materialize. Faced with the looming possibility of another setback, Mission Control initiated various procedures and enlisted the Goonhilly Ground Station in Britain to scan for any signs of activity from the spacecraft.

At 6:37 pm EST, Intuitive Systems, the creators of Odysseus, verified communication with the lander at its designated landing spot in the Malapert A crater.

An Intuitive Machines spokesperson remarked, “Odysseus has found its new residence.”

Read the original article on: New atlas

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