Goodnight, Odysseus. Intuitive Machines' private moon lander goes offline — but could it rise again?

Odysseus launched Feb. 15 atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, headed for the moon and a date with destiny. 

The 14.1-foot-tall (4.3 meters) spacecraft reached lunar orbit on Feb. 21 and touched down a day later near Malapert A, a crater about 190 miles (300 kilometers) from the moon's south pole. The landing was a success, but it wasn't easy. 

Just hours before touchdown, the mission team discovered that Odysseus' laser rangefinders, which were supposed to give the craft its altitude and horizontal-velocity readouts during the descent, weren't functioning. So, they devised a workaround, pressing into service an experimental LIDAR (light detection and ranging) instrument that NASA put on board the lander.

A selfie snapped by Intuitive Machines' Odysseus lander on the surface of the moon on Feb. 22, 2024. The company shared this shot via X on Feb. 29, 2024, the day Odie powered down. (Image credit: Intuitive Machines)

This technology demonstration was one of six payloads the agency flew on Odysseus via a $118 million contract awarded by its Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program. CLPS is leveraging the emerging capabilities of American private landers to send NASA science gear to the moon. The main goal is to aid the agency's Artemis program, which aims to set up a base near the lunar south pole by the end of the 2020s.

Odysseus also carried six private payloads on this debut mission, which Intuitive Machines calls IM-1. Among those was a sample of Columbia Sportswear's "Omni-Heat Infinity" insulative material, which got a deep-space test on the flight, and an archive that will preserve on the moon a large sample of humanity's accumulated knowledge, including the secrets behind David Copperfield's most famous illusions. 

Another private payload was EagleCam, a camera system built by students at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. EagleCam was supposed to deploy from Odysseus during the Feb. 22 descent in order to snap photos of the action from ground level. The mission team decided to keep EagleCam on board during the landing, however, due to the navigation issues. EagleCam was finally deployed on Wednesday, but it wasn't able to send imagery home before Odie went dark. 

Navigation issues also contributed to Odysseus' relatively rough touchdown. The lander came in a bit faster than planned on Feb. 22. It hit the sloping lunar ground relatively hard, breaking one or two of its six legs and eventually tipping over onto its side.

This orientation made it harder for the mission team to communicate with Odysseus, and harder for the lander to harvest the sunlight it needed to keep operating in the harsh lunar environment. Still, Odie managed to hit its longevity mark: Intuitive Machines had previously estimated Odysseus' surface mission would last a week or so.

A selfie snapped by Intuitive Machines' Odysseus spacecraft on the moon on Feb. 27, 2024. (Image credit: Intuitive Machines via X)

Despite the above issues, Intuitive Machines and NASA both regard Odysseus' moon landing as a success, one that bodes well for the future of lunar exploration. The space agency, for example, got data down from all five of its active instruments on Odie. (The sixth is a laser retroreflector array, a passive instrument designed to help other lunar spacecraft navigate.)

"The bottom line is that every payload has met some level of their objective, and we're very excited about that," Sue Lederer, CLPS project scientist at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, said during Wednesday's press briefing.

Lederer also voiced optimism about Odie's chances of waking up from its long lunar sleep, even though the probe wasn't designed to do so.

"He's a scrappy little dude," she said. "So, I have confidence in Odie at this point. It's been incredible."

And there is precedent for such a revival: Japan's SLIM spacecraft, the nation's first-ever successful moon lander, woke up from its lunar hibernation just a few days ago. 

So, keep your fingers crossed: We may yet hear from Odie again.

Quelle: SC

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Update: 5.03.2024

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NASA largely satisfied with Intuitive Machines lunar deliveries despite 'challenges'

The Laser Retroreflector Array is passive and initial estimates suggest it is accessible for laser ranging from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter's Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter to create a permanent location marker on the Moon.

In a significant milestone for lunar exploration, NASA has once again left its mark on the Moon, facilitated by the historic landing of Intuitive Machines' Nova-C lander, Odysseus. This event, occurring on February 22, 2024, not only underscores the evolving landscape of space exploration partnerships but also represents the resilience and innovative spirit driving the new era of lunar exploration.

Odysseus' journey to the lunar surface, commencing with a launch aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, culminated in a successful soft landing near Malapert A crater, a stone's throw from the Moon's South Pole. This feat was achieved despite unexpected hurdles, including a delay in the landing process necessitated by the failure of some navigation sensors and the subsequent need for additional software uploads.

This mission, executed under the auspices of NASA's Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative, part of the broader Artemis campaign, was marked by several firsts and technological demonstrations. Among the payloads delivered were six science instruments designed to expand our understanding of the Moon through a range of measurements, including the analysis of radio noise generated by the Earth and Sun and aiding the navigation and landing process of the lander itself.

Despite the challenges encountered during the landing process, where the Navigation Doppler Lidar, initially a tech demo, was repurposed as the primary navigation system, the mission was a resounding success. The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter's capture of the lander resting on the lunar surface not only attested to the mission's success but also highlighted the robust engineering and design of the mission's propulsion system, particularly the VR900 engine. This engine, a testament to Intuitive Machines' capability in rapid prototyping and testing, played a pivotal role in the lander's successful touchdown.

The mission's success, despite the partial failure in landing, underscores the resilience and adaptability of modern space exploration efforts. It opens up new avenues for scientific discovery and technological demonstration on the lunar surface, providing valuable data that will aid in the preparation for future human and robotic missions to the Moon and beyond. In a landmark achievement for space exploration, NASA has successfully collected data from the lunar surface for the first time in over 50 years, utilizing a commercial mission contract under its Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative, part of the broader Artemis campaign. This marks a significant milestone in NASA's efforts to leverage commercial partnerships to advance lunar science and exploration.

The mission, executed by Intuitive Machines' lunar lander named Odysseus, successfully touched down in the lunar South Pole region on February 22, marking the first U.S. soft landing on the Moon in decades. The Odysseus lander carried six science instruments and technology demonstrations designed to expand our understanding of the Moon. These instruments began their operations immediately upon landing, conducting a range of measurements from the analysis of radio noise generated by the Earth and Sun to assisting in the navigation and landing process of the lander itself.

Joel Kearns, Deputy Association Administrator for Exploration at NASA's Science Mission Directorate, highlighted the mission's significance, stating, "This is the first time in over 50 years that an American organization has landed instruments on the surface of the Moon." Kearns emphasized the mission as evidence of the viability of the CLPS model, where NASA purchases services for sending instruments to the Moon and receiving data back, congratulating the Intuitive Machines team and NASA scientists and engineers for this achievement.

Throughout the mission, from transit to the Moon to the surface operations, the instruments onboard Odysseus performed exceptionally. Notably, the Radio Frequency Mass Gauge and Navigation Doppler Lidar collected valuable data during the lander's descent and landing, while other instruments such as the Radio-wave Observations at the Lunar Surface of the Photoelectron Sheath and Lunar Node-1 successfully performed surface operations and data collection. However, the Stereo Cameras for Lunar Plume-Surface Studies faced challenges in capturing images of the lander's rocket plume interaction with the lunar surface during landing.

A standout feature of the mission is the Laser Retroreflector Array, a passive instrument that, according to initial estimates, is accessible for laser ranging from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter's Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter. This instrument is set to create a permanent location marker on the Moon, providing a legacy of precision measurement for future missions.

Sue Lederer, project scientist for CLPS, expressed satisfaction with the mission outcomes, stating, "Every NASA instrument has met some level of their objectives...we are very excited about that." Lederer highlighted the collaborative effort and the critical role of the team in overcoming challenges to achieve mission success.

The mission has yielded more than 500 megabytes of science, technology, and spacecraft data, now ready for analysis by NASA and Intuitive Machines. The first images from the mission, showcasing the lander's orientation and offering a glimpse of the South Pole region, have been transmitted back to Earth. These images and data will not only enrich our understanding of the lunar environment but also inform future missions under the CLPS initiative, with Intuitive Machines set to undertake two more contracts awarded by NASA.

Quelle: SD