U.S. private company set to land craft on Moon for the first time in 50 years
After more than five decades since the last Apollo mission, the United States is gearing up to try once again to land a craft on the Moon on January 25. The landing will be attempted by the first private company, Astrobotic, to successfully touch down on the lunar surface.
The lander, named Peregrine, will be unmanned and developed by American company Astrobotic. CEO John Thornton stated that it will carry NASA instruments to study the lunar environment in anticipation of NASA’s Artemis manned missions.
The mission is part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program, which involves commissioning US companies to send scientific experiments and technologies to the Moon. The program aims to develop a lunar economy and provide transport services at a lower cost.
“One of the big challenges of what we’re attempting here is attempting a launch and landing on the surface of the Moon for a fraction of what it would otherwise cost,” said Thornton at a press briefing.
The takeoff is scheduled for December 24 from Florida aboard the inaugural flight of the new rocket from the ULA industrial group, named Vulcan Centaur. The probe will then take “a few days” to reach lunar orbit, but will have to wait until January 25 before attempting landing, according to Thornton.
The descent will be carried out autonomously, without human intervention, but will be monitored from the company’s control center. Thornton also mentioned that “only about half of the missions that have gone to the surface of the Moon have been successful,” highlighting the daunting challenge ahead.
In addition to Astrobotic, NASA has signed contracts with other companies, such as Firefly Aerospace, Draper, and Intuitive Machines. The CLPS program manager, Chris Culbert, mentioned that NASA leadership is aware of the risks and has accepted that some of these missions might not succeed.
With its Artemis program, NASA aims to establish a base on the surface of the Moon, and the success of these private companies’ missions could have an impact on the commercial infrastructure needed to achieve this goal.
The upcoming mission by Astrobotic marks a significant step in the renewed efforts to explore and utilize the Moon, potentially paving the way for future lunar exploration and establishing a lasting presence on the lunar surface.