The United States’ return to the lunar surface has been long-awaited and highly anticipated. After more than 50 years since the last Apollo mission, a new era of space exploration is upon us. With the first private lander touching down in February 2024, NASA and its industry partners are now pushing for more moon landings within a single week, marking a bold initiative to make moon missions a routine part of space exploration.
The upcoming missions are set to make history and showcase the advancements made in the field of space technology. First up is Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost Mission 1, aptly nicknamed “Ghost Riders in the Sky.” This mission will embark on a 45-day journey in January, aiming to land near Mons Latreille, a volcanic feature in Mare Crisium on the moon’s northeastern near side, at 3:34 a.m. U.S. Eastern time. Along the way, it will capture stunning footage of the moon, coming as close as 100 kilometers above the surface.
The golden lander, comparable in size to a hippopotamus, carries 10 instruments, each with a specific purpose. One of these instruments will analyze lunar soil, while another will test radiation-tolerant computing. Additionally, the lander will be equipped with a GPS-based navigation system. Designed to operate for a full lunar day (14 Earth days), Blue Ghost is expected to capture high-definition imagery of a total eclipse on March 14, when Earth blocks the Sun from the Moon’s horizon. This will provide valuable insights into the moon’s natural phenomena.
But the most exciting part of the mission is yet to come. On March 16, Blue Ghost will record a lunar sunset, offering a rare glimpse into how dust levitates above the surface under solar influence, creating the mysterious lunar horizon glow first documented by Apollo astronaut Eugene Cernan. This will be a momentous occasion, as it has never been captured before.
Following closely behind Blue Ghost is Intuitive Machines’ IM-2 mission, featuring its lander, Athena. Last year, Intuitive Machines made history as the first private company to achieve a soft landing on the moon, although the moment was dampened by a mishap. This time, the company has made key improvements to the lander, which has a taller, slimmer profile than Blue Ghost and is around the height of an adult giraffe.
Athena launched on Wednesday aboard a SpaceX rocket, taking a more direct route toward Mons Mouton, the southernmost lunar landing site ever attempted. It carries an ambitious set of payloads, including a unique hopping drone designed to explore the moon’s underground passages carved by ancient lava flows, a drill capable of digging 3 feet beneath the surface in search of ice, and three rovers. The largest rover, about the size of a beagle, will connect to the lander and hopper using a Nokia cellular network in a first-of-its-kind demonstration.
But the star of the show is “Grace,” the hopping drone named after computing pioneer Grace Hopper. This drone has the potential to steal the limelight if it succeeds in navigating the moon’s treacherous terrain in ways no rover has done before. It will be a groundbreaking achievement and a testament to the advancements in technology.
Landing on the moon is no easy feat, especially considering the absence of an atmosphere, rendering parachutes ineffective. Instead, spacecraft must rely on precisely controlled thruster burns to slow their descent while navigating hazardous terrain. Only five national space agencies, including the Soviet Union, the United States, China, India, and Japan, have achieved this feat in the past. With Intuitive Machines’ first successful mission, the United States is now working towards making private lunar missions a routine affair through NASA’s $2.6 billion Commercial Lunar Payload Services program, a public-private initiative designed to deliver hardware to the surface at a fraction of traditional mission costs.
These upcoming missions are taking place at a pivotal moment for NASA, amidst speculation of scaling back or even canceling its Artemis lunar program in favor of prioritizing Mars exploration. This is a key goal of President Donald Trump and his close advisor, SpaceX founder Elon Musk. However, with these exciting and groundbreaking missions, it is clear that the United States is fully committed to exploring and understanding our closest celestial neighbor, the Moon.
In conclusion, the upcoming missions to the Moon are a testament to the human spirit of exploration and discovery. They
