Lunar Landings News and Discussions

[weatheriscool]

NASA delays crewed lunar landing to 2027
https://phys.org/news/2024-12-nasa-dela ... lunar.html
A supermoon rises over Singapore on October 17, 2024.

The United States is pushing back its planned return to the moon from 2026 to "mid-2027" as it deals with heat shield issues and other troubles plaguing its Orion crew capsule, NASA officials said Thursday.

The announcement comes as President-elect Donald Trump is preparing to take office in January and could significantly reshape the direction of the US space agency.

Artemis, named after the sister of Apollo in Greek mythology, was officially announced in 2017 as part of NASA's plans to establish a sustained presence on Earth's nearest space neighbor, and apply lessons learned there for a future mission to Mars.

Its first mission, an uncrewed test flight to the moon and back called Artemis 1, took place in 2022, after several postponements.

But teams reviewing the data later learned that Orion's heat shield eroded in unexpected ways, and there were also issues with its electrical and life support systems.

"We were able to recreate the problem here on Earth, and now we know the root cause, and this has allowed us to devise a path forward," NASA administrator Bill Nelson told reporters during a press conference.

[wjfox]

NASA delays crewed lunar landing to 2027
https://phys.org/news/2024-12-nasa-dela ... lunar.html
A supermoon rises over Singapore on October 17, 2024.

The United States is pushing back its planned return to the moon from 2026 to "mid-2027" as it deals with heat shield issues and other troubles plaguing its Orion crew capsule, NASA officials said Thursday.

The announcement comes as President-elect Donald Trump is preparing to take office in January and could significantly reshape the direction of the US space agency.

Artemis, named after the sister of Apollo in Greek mythology, was officially announced in 2017 as part of NASA's plans to establish a sustained presence on Earth's nearest space neighbor, and apply lessons learned there for a future mission to Mars.

Its first mission, an uncrewed test flight to the moon and back called Artemis 1, took place in 2022, after several postponements.

But teams reviewing the data later learned that Orion's heat shield eroded in unexpected ways, and there were also issues with its electrical and life support systems.

"We were able to recreate the problem here on Earth, and now we know the root cause, and this has allowed us to devise a path forward," NASA administrator Bill Nelson told reporters during a press conference.

It's very frustrating how practically every mission involving the Moon seems to get delayed, over and over again. But also understandable, as safety must always be paramount. I suspect that "mid-2027" date will get pushed back, and probably again after that. I'm beginning to think the first Mars mission won't happen until the 2050s-60s.

[weatheriscool]

NASA delays crewed lunar landing to 2027
https://phys.org/news/2024-12-nasa-dela ... lunar.html
A supermoon rises over Singapore on October 17, 2024.

The United States is pushing back its planned return to the moon from 2026 to "mid-2027" as it deals with heat shield issues and other troubles plaguing its Orion crew capsule, NASA officials said Thursday.

The announcement comes as President-elect Donald Trump is preparing to take office in January and could significantly reshape the direction of the US space agency.

Artemis, named after the sister of Apollo in Greek mythology, was officially announced in 2017 as part of NASA's plans to establish a sustained presence on Earth's nearest space neighbor, and apply lessons learned there for a future mission to Mars.

Its first mission, an uncrewed test flight to the moon and back called Artemis 1, took place in 2022, after several postponements.

But teams reviewing the data later learned that Orion's heat shield eroded in unexpected ways, and there were also issues with its electrical and life support systems.

"We were able to recreate the problem here on Earth, and now we know the root cause, and this has allowed us to devise a path forward," NASA administrator Bill Nelson told reporters during a press conference.

It's very frustrating how practically every mission involving the Moon seems to get delayed, over and over again. But also understandable, as safety must always be paramount. I suspect that "mid-2027" date will get pushed back, and probably again after that. I'm beginning to think the first Mars mission won't happen until the 2050s-60s.

Nasa will probably become the science wing of space-x under Trump with maybe a mandate of government funding and support. Elon musk space-x will probably get people to the moon by 2027-2028 and mars not long after. Sadly, private companies like space-x and more so under someone that doesn't give a shit about safety is probably the only real chance of another moon landing and going to mars within the next 10-20 years. My main problem with this model of doing things is science is going to be put on the back burner over economic and military advancement. This is why I wish elon would start up a asteroid and planetary mining company that works with space-x...This way we'd have the economic drive to stay on mars.

[firestar464]

Or space exploration could just die along with the astronauts that die in a future accident due to Elon's disregard for safety.

[Powers]

Or space exploration could just die along with the astronauts that die in a future accident due to Elon's disregard for safety.

Not like governments like the Chinese would stop with that either.

[weatheriscool]

New commercial Artemis moon rovers undergo testing at NASA
https://phys.org/news/2024-12-commercia ... -nasa.html
by Victoria Ugalde, NASA

Through NASA's Artemis campaign, astronauts will land on the lunar surface and use a new generation of spacesuits and rovers as they live, work, and conduct science in the moon's south pole region, exploring more of the lunar surface than ever before. Recently, the agency completed the first round of testing on three commercially owned and developed LTVs (Lunar Terrain Vehicle) from Intuitive Machines, Lunar Outpost, and Venturi Astrolab at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston.
As part of an ongoing year-long feasibility study, each company delivered a static mockup of their vehicle to Johnson at the end of September, initiated rover testing in October and completed the first round of testing in December inside the Active Response Gravity Offload System (ARGOS) test facility. Lunar surface gravity is one-sixth of what we experience here on Earth, so to mimic this, ARGOS offers an analog environment that can offload pressurized suited subjects for various reduced gravity simulations.
NASA engineer Dave Coan (left) and NASA astronaut Jessica Watkins (right) sit

[weatheriscool]

US company Firefly Aerospace to launch for moon next week

This undated handout image courtesy of Firefly Aerospace shows the fully assembled Blue Ghost Mission 1 lunar lander vehicle.

US company Firefly Aerospace said Tuesday it is aiming to launch a lander to the moon next week under an experimental NASA program that partners with the commercial sector to reduce costs.

If successful, it would mark only the second time an American robot has touched down on the lunar surface since the end of the Apollo era.

"Buckle up! Our road trip to the moon is set to launch at 1:11 a.m. EST on Wednesday, Jan. 15, aboard a @SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket," Texas-based Firefly Space wrote in a post on X.

The company's lander, Blue Ghost, stands 2 meters (6.6 feet) tall and 3.5 meters (11.5 feet) wide. It will aim to deliver gear for 10 science research projects and technology demonstrations to a volcanic feature called Mons Latreille, located within Mare Crisium on the moon's northeast near side.

https://phys.org/news/2025-01-company-f ... -week.html

[weatheriscool]

[caltrek]

For further background: https://skyandtelescope.org/astronomy-n ... -the-moon/

[weatheriscool]

[firestar464]

(Link is broken so here's a different one)

https://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration ... nar_lander

[weatheriscool]

Replacing SLS With SpaceX Falcon Heavy or New Glenn for Lunar Flyby
February 7, 2025 by Brian Wang

The NASA Artemis 2 mission would be a manned lunar flyby. It will cost about $5-10 billion with the SLS and Orion systems. A SpaceX Falcon Heavy option with modified Dragon would cost about $2-3 billion.

https://www.nextbigfuture.com/2025/02/r ... flyby.html

[weatheriscool]

Six things to know about NASA's Lunar Trailblazer
https://phys.org/news/2025-02-nasa-luna ... lazer.html
by NASA

Launching no earlier than Wednesday, Feb. 26, NASA's Lunar Trailblazer will help resolve an enduring mystery: Where is the moon's water? After sharing a ride on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket with Intuitive Machines' IM-2 launch—part of NASA's CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative—the small satellite will take several months to arrive in lunar orbit.

The small satellite mission will map the moon to help scientists better understand where its water is, what form it's in, how much is there, and how it changes over time.

Here are six things to know about the mission.

[weatheriscool]

[wjfox]

Private spacecraft Blue Ghost lands on Moon

2 hours ago

A private spacecraft has landed on the Moon, becoming only the second commercial vehicle to reach the lunar surface.

Blue Ghost left Earth on January 15, after being launched by US firm Firefly Aerospace with the intention of exploring the Sea of Crises, a huge crater visible from Earth.

The project is the latest collaboration by US space agency Nasa and private companies.

Intuitive Machines, another firm, is hoping to land its Athena spacecraft near the Moon's south pole in the next few days.

Intuitive was the first private company to achieve a lunar landing. Its spacecraft Odysseus reached the Moon on 22 February last year.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cd9208qv1kzo



Credit: Firefly Aerospace

[wjfox]

Damn.

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Toppled private spacecraft can't complete Moon mission

1 hour ago

A private spacecraft that landed lopsided on the Moon does not have enough power to complete its mission, says the company Intuitive Machines.

Athena touched down on the lunar South Pole shortly after 1730GMT (1230EST) on Thursday, but it later was revealed the craft had landed on its side.

It was supposed to spend 10 days searching for water ice, but the position of its solar panels and the cold temperatures of the rocky region mean it cannot recharge.

Intuitive Machines partnered with US space agency Nasa to explore whether humans can live on the Moon.

"With the direction of the sun, the orientation of the solar panels, and extreme cold temperatures in the crater, Intuitive Machines does not expect Athena to recharge," the company said in a statement about the mission called IM-2.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/crew5z55ygjo

[weatheriscool]

Blue Ghost lander captures stunning sunset shots on the moon before falling silent
https://phys.org/news/2025-03-blue-ghos ... nning.html
by Marcia Dunn

A private lunar lander has captured the first high-definition sunset pictures from the moon.

Firefly Aerospace and NASA released the stunning photos Tuesday, taken before the Blue Ghost lander fell silent over the weekend. One shot included Venus in the distance.
Firefly's Blue Ghost landed on the moon on March 2, the first private spacecraft to touch down upright and perform its entire mission. It kept taking pictures and collecting science data five hours into the lunar night before it died for lack of solar energy.

NASA's Joel Kearns said B

[weatheriscool]

NASA's Electrodynamic Moon Dust Shield Proves Successful on Lunar Surface
Along with Artemis, the agency has been hard at work on a fairly mundane aspect of lunar travel: dealing with moon dust.
By Adrianna Nine April 4, 2025

Humans' future on the Moon is multifaceted, and some of those facets are less glamorous than others. Although NASA's biggest Artemis conferences tend to focus on the flashy parts of the program, the agency has also been hard at work on a fairly mundane aspect of lunar travel: dealing with moon dust. Its latest mitigation technology, called the Electrodynamic Dust Shield (EDS), has just been deemed a success.

Lunar regolith isn't just abundant—it's also clingy. Its electrostatic properties mean it sticks to anything it touches, and its abrasiveness means each tiny grain can scratch the surface of whatever it's on. Not unlike Mars dust, these qualities could cause major health issues for any future astronauts who accidentally breathe it in. The dust could also damage spacecraft, spacesuits, and other vital equipment.

https://www.extremetech.com/science/nas ... ar-surface

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