While more than half a century has passed since NASA last sent astronauts to the Moon, it is considered a very exciting development that the space agency will return to our satellite with the upcoming Artemis missions. NASA will return to the Moon for the first time with a private company’s lander on January 25, before a crewed launch planned for November 2024.
The mission, run by American space company Astrobotic, will carry the space agency’s instruments to the lunar surface to conduct surveys before NASA’s planned landings. The Peregrine lander will carry 21 payloads from seven different countries, including NASA, various governments, universities and companies.
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NASA’s payloads include a Neutron Spectrometer System that will look for signs of water ice near the Moon’s surface, examine the composition of soil, and a Linear Energy Transfer Spectrometer that will collect information about radioactivity on the Moon’s surface. A more “strange” payload funded by a cryptocurrency company would be a single bitcoin loaded onto a physical coin emblazoned with the logo.
The company hopes to guarantee 10 days of operation for the instruments once they reach the Moon, before their work is likely to be halted by the long lunar night.
“It is incredible to realize that we are only a short time away from our Peregrine spacecraft starting its journey to the Moon,” Astrobotic CEO John Thorntoni said in a press release. “After years of dedication and hard work, we are very close to our Moon journey. “We invite you to follow the launch of Peregrine to the Moon, with seven countries represented on board, and its attempt to achieve one of the first successful landings of an American spacecraft since Apollo.”
While this launch will be an exciting event for many people, companies and agencies, for some it will be a “funeral”. Celestis, the space funeral company that promises to send the remains of your loved ones into space, is among the names on the lander.
The Peregrine lunar lander has been safely transported to Cape Canaveral, Florida, ahead of its launch date of December 24, 2023. “As we know, space is a harsh environment,” said Sharad Bhaskaran, Director of Astrobotic’s Peregrine Mission One. “We are ready to launch after successfully completing industry-standard acceptance testing to ensure Peregrine has the best chance for mission success,” he said. “Peregrine and its crew are ready. Following launch, we will separate from Vulcan Centaur and establish power and communications with the spacecraft to guide it to the Moon. “We will then attempt a historic autonomous landing on the lunar surface.”
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