By Joey Roulette, Akash I Pressure
Washington (Reuters) -The second landing of the moon from intuitive machines seems to have suffered the same fate as its first attempt last year, with data showing that Athens Lander ended on its side on the moon’s surface after problems with its laser scope, the US company said on Thursday.
Six legs Athens Lander, carrying 11 useful loads and scientific instruments, touched a place about 100 miles (160 km) from the lunar southern pole after firing to the top of the SpaceX rocket on February 26 from Florida.
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“We do not believe that we are in the right attitude towards the surface of the moon, but again,” said Steve Altem, CEO of the Startup based in Houston at a press conference.
Intuitive machines are one of the many companies primed by NASA to return the United States to the moon, with the greater participation of the private sector being considered as a lower price but a higher risk of space flight. The company’s shares decreased by 36% of about $ 7 for prolonged trade after closing the regular NASDAQ session by $ 20% at $ 11.26.
Altem said the agricultural had sent some data back to the ground, which indicated they were not upright. Moreover, he said, data from an instrument called inertial measurement, or IMU, “says we are somewhat oriented on our side.”
“The IMU measurement was the part of the data that gave us the most clarity … So we think it is so,” added Altemus.
Problems with electricity production due to Lander’s position will mean that the mission will be “out of the nominal,” Altemus said, adding that there are “challenges” with laser range used to measure precision distances.
The landing of Athens is aimed at a touchdown, set for 12:32 pm ET (1732 GMT). But at that time his engine still works, telemetry showed as it seems to be moving above the surface of the moon. Minutes later, after directing Lander’s engine to turn off, the company confirmed that Athens “was on the surface of the moon”, although its accurate orientation was not yet clear.
The company can abandon its third lunar landing mission scheduled for next year to wait for the satellite of the communications satellite, said Altemus
Athens flies from a winding path to the moon about 238,000 miles (383,000 km) from Earth.
The leaders of the company tried to put a positive rotation of development.
Chief Technology Director Tim Cray
“The future is bright for intuitive machines to land many and many loads on the moon,” Crane said.
The first attempt to land the moon from intuitive machines almost a year ago, using its Odysseus Lander, noted the most successful landing attempt at the time by a private company.
But its heavy pressing – due to the defective laser altitude used to judge its distance from the ground – broke Lander’s leg and made the craft collapse, doomed to many of its built -in experiments.
Five countries made successful soft landings in the past – the then council, the United States, China, India and Last year Japan. The United States and China are striving to put their astronauts on the moon during this decade, with every ally for courtship and giving their private sectors a key role in the development of spacecraft.
The first torn landing of the moon in India, Chandra-3 in 2023, touched on the lunar southern pole. The area is viewed by the main cosmic forces for its potential to extract resources after astronauts return to the surface – underground water ice can be turned into a theory into rocket fuel.
Austin-based aerospace space by Firesfy this month is celebrating a clean landing on its Blue Ghost Lander, noting the most successful soft landing from a private company to date.
Intuitive machines, Firefly, Astrobotic Technology and a handful of other companies are building lunar spacecraft under the NASA commercial load services program, an effort to sow a low -budget spacecraft that can shake the surface of the moon before sending astrona there
(Report from Joey Roulette, Akash and I Play Peter Henderson; Edit by Will Dunam and Rosalba O’Brien)