Lander

Atari If you asked me to make a list of the most stressful video games of all time, Lunar Lander would be pretty high up there. The Atari classic is a masterclass in minimalist tension, asking players to land spaceships on rocky planets very gingerly. Those who experienced that game when it launched could probably regale you with war stories about their space-faring escapades, but Atari is about to give players a new panic attack. Lunar Lander Beyond is a new reimagining of the classic Atari game from developer…

A mere one week after stumbling to the lunar surface in its historic journey, the Moon lander Odysseus has officially ended its brief mission – at least, for now.Mission control has shut down the lander in preparation of the long lunar night, but not before receiving a final image of a cratered landscape and dark sky featuring a tiny crescent Earth in the blinding glare of the Sun.Before its power was depleted, Odysseus completed a fitting farewell transmission. Received today, this image from February 22nd showcases the…

In a poignant moment captured amid the vastness of space, the Odysseus moon lander, operated by Intuitive Machines, sent back its final transmission before succumbing to the lunar night. With one of its legs askew during landing and power lost, the spacecraft left us with a lasting and wondrous image — a snapshot of Earth seen as a distant crescent shining against the grey expanse of the lunar horizon.The image, received on February 22nd but shared by Intuitive Machines on X on February 29th, serves as a reminder of…

Intuitive Machines’ first lunar lander officially lost power today after spending seven days on the moon. The lander made history for being the first American hardware to reach the lunar surface since 1972 and the first privately built spacecraft to land on the moon. But the lander, called Odysseus, will be remembered for another reason: its propulsion system. That propulsion system, which uses a combination of cryogenic liquid oxygen and liquid methane, could unlock new capabilities in space and de-risk future…

Tackling one of the unsung but absolutely necessary tasks of Moon exploration, NASA and SpaceX are doing intensive testing of the docking mechanism that will be used to transfer astronauts from Artemis to the Starship Human Landing System (HLS).Designing and building spacecraft requires attention to details that most people don't think about, such as how you get two vehicles to dock with one another. It's a very basic problem in order to move crew and cargo from one craft to another, but the answer can be elusive.In fact,…

Intuitive Machines’ Odysseus landing during its descent towards the lunar surface. Image: Intuitive MachinesIt was a topsy-turvy month in spaceflight, with yet another lunar lander falling over and an upsetting new view showing NASA’s Ingenuity helicopter missing a rotor blade, among other memorable moments. February is the shortest month of the year, but it often packs a punch and feels a helluva lot longer than it should. Such was the case this year, especially in the world of spaceflight and astronomy, which witnessed…

A new photo of Odysseus released by NASA illustrates just how rough the lander’s journey to the Moon has been, shining a light on its spunky resilience against all odds.Moon Knight Gives Us HopeTaken on February 22, the day the lander touched down on the Moon, the photo shows Odysseus, affectionately called “Odie,” with a clearly broken leg on the lunar surface. While the photo might not look all that encouraging, Intuitive Machines explained that a perfect storm of events managed to work in Odie’s favor. Not only did…

NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter captured this image of the Intuitive Machines’ Nova-C lander, called Odysseus, on the Moon’s surface on Feb. 24, 2024, at 1:57 p.m. EST). Odysseus landed at 80.13 degrees south latitude, 1.44 degrees east longitude, at an elevation of 8,461 feet (2,579 meters). The image is 3,192 feet (973 meters) wide, and lunar north is up. Credit: NASA/Goddard/Arizona State UniversityOdysseus’ landing on the Moon represents a landmark achievement for NASA’s lunar exploration, capturing the first soft…

After a nail-biting touchdown on the lunar surface that left Odysseus bent over on its side, the lander is ready for its nap. Intuitive Machines is getting ready to power down its lunar lander, with hopes that Odie may wake up once the Sun illuminates its functioning solar array again.China's Plan to Land Astronauts on the MoonThe Houston-based company held a press conference on Wednesday to give an update on its IM-1 mission, which landed on the Moon on February 22. The Odysseus lander had some trouble making it to the…

Intuitive Machines’ first moon mission will come to a premature end due to the spacecraft landing on its side, which altered how the solar panels are positioned in relation to the sun, the company said in an update Tuesday morning. Flight controllers were still working to determine the battery’s remaining life, which could be between 10-20 hours. The spacecraft, which landed on the moon five days ago, was expected to operate for 7-10 days. Intuitive Machines made history when it landed its spacecraft, called…