A privately owned lunar lander successfully touched down near the moon’s south pole on Thursday, carrying a drill, drone, and rovers for NASA and other clients. However, soon after landing, the mission encountered complications, and the lander may have fallen over.
Intuitive Machines, the Houston-based company behind the mission, remains uncertain whether its Athena lander, standing at 15 feet tall, is upright or lying on its side. This follows a similar issue with the company’s first lunar lander last year. Mission controllers quickly turned off some equipment to conserve power while assessing the situation.
The landing marked the second moon touchdown in a week by a Texas company under NASA’s commercial lunar delivery program. Unlike Firefly Aerospace’s successful landing on Sunday, Athena’s descent was hindered by a malfunctioning laser navigation system. Despite the setback, Athena was able to generate solar power and maintain communication with controllers more than 230,000 miles away.
NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter will soon sweep over the site to confirm the lander’s position. In the meantime, mission managers are evaluating whether scientific operations can continue, including deploying the drill and a drone designed to hop into a shadowed crater in search of frozen water.
Athena’s mission is part of NASA’s initiative to use commercial landers for lunar exploration, paving the way for future Artemis program astronaut missions. Despite the challenges, NASA officials remain committed to advancing lunar research, acknowledging that some low-cost missions may encounter difficulties.
