Written by Akash Sriram (Reuters) – Intuitive Machines saw a 34% drop in premarket trading on Friday after its second moon lander, Athena, appeared to have landed on its side, reminiscent of the company’s previous lunar landing attempt last year. The six-legged Athena lander landed near the moon’s south pole, but CEO Steve Altemus revealed that data indicated the lander was sideways. This orientation poses challenges for power generation from its solar panels, leading to the mission being considered “off-nominal” by the company. Intuitive Machines has received the majority of its potential $120 million contract for the landing, but milestone payments hinge on the payloads being operational, as per analyst Austin Moeller from Canaccord Genuity. The Houston-based company’s shares closed 20% lower on Thursday, following significant growth in the past year. With about 56% of shares available for trade, the company remains subject to high volatility. Athena carried 11 payloads and scientific instruments to the moon, including a drill to search for water ice and other resources in the lunar soil, as well as the first data center and cellular network on the moon. In a separate incident, SpaceX’s Starship mega rocket, the world’s largest, exploded shortly after launch on Thursday, marking the Elon Musk-led company’s second consecutive failure. As part of NASA’s strategy to revive lunar exploration cost-effectively, Intuitive is among the companies spearheading the private sector’s return to the moon. Firefly Aerospace, based in Austin, recently achieved a successful landing of its Blue Ghost lander, marking a significant milestone in private company soft landings. Despite the sideways landing potentially affecting Intuitive’s credibility, analyst Andres Sheppard from Cantor Fitzgerald believes the company is well-positioned to capitalize on the industry, suggesting that the situation does not imply a dire outlook for the company. (Reporting by Akash Sriram in Bengaluru; Editing by Tasim Zahid)
