Circling the moon’s far side at a height of 62 miles, a sturdy lander initiated its main engine at 2:31 a.m. EST, beginning a suspenseful 63-minute descent to the landing area in Mare Crisium – the Sea of Crises – situated in the moon’s northeast quadrant as seen from Earth. The 6.6-foot-tall lander glided for the next 52 minutes before utilizing its main engine and eight smaller reaction control system (RCS) thrusters to slow its speed from around 3,800 mph to just 90 mph as it positioned itself above the landing site. After autonomously surveying the area for obstacles like boulders and slopes, the Blue Ghost lander descended with the assistance of its eight reaction control system jets, which adjusted velocity and orientation as needed. The jets controlled the craft’s descent, bringing it to a gentle 2.2 mph for the final 30 feet. Firefly Aerospace staff and their families, known as “Fireflies,” closely monitored telemetry on a large screen near the company’s headquarters and mission control center in Austin, Texas, anxiously awaiting the 11.5-foot-wide spacecraft’s approach to the surface. “Eleven meters up,” a flight controller announced over the Firefly mission control audio. Shortly after, the thrusters powered down, and surface contact sensors on Blue Ghost’s shock-absorbing landing legs confirmed its touchdown on the lunar surface. “Engine shutdown confirmed,” a flight controller confirmed, followed by reassurance that the vehicle was operational. With the craft now charging via its solar cells and stable in lunar gravity, cheers erupted among observers. Chief engineer Will Coogan announced the successful landing, prompting jubilant celebration among the Firefly team. The achievement marks the first fully successful moon landing by a commercial company. Celebratory hats were distributed, and accolades poured in, including a congratulatory message from Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin. Launched on Jan. 15, the landing coincided with the start of a two-week lunar day, during which the solar-powered Blue Ghost will conduct 10 NASA-sponsored experiments. If all goes well, the lander will continue its operation into the lunar night using stored battery power. Firefly CEO Jason Kim emphasized the significance of the cost-effective and technologically advanced mission, drawing parallels to gymnast Simone Biles’ flawless landing techniques.
At the Olympics, we plan to do the same for the state of Texas, for America, and for the world.”For Ray Allensworth, the spacecraft program director at Firefly, the moon will forever hold a new significance.”We used to dream about gazing up at the moon and imagining where it would be,” she expressed. “But now, knowing that we’ll reach it, the feeling is entirely different. So, when the next full moon rises, I won’t be able to sleep. I’ll be captivated by its sight all night long.”NASA has partnered with Firefly Aerospace, providing $101 million to transport 10 agency-sponsored science instruments and technology demonstrations, valued at $44 million, to the moon through the Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative. The Blue Ghost lander is shown here in a clean room before launch, a crucial part of this endeavor.
The CLPS program is designed to promote private industry involvement in launching agency payloads to the moon, gathering essential science and engineering data before Artemis astronauts embark on missions near the lunar south pole in the coming years.”Before we send our astronauts back to the moon, we are sending a multitude of scientific and technological advancements to pave the way,” stated Nicky Fox, NASA Headquarters’ Director of Space Science.”The experiments on Firefly’s Blue Ghost will be pivotal in enhancing our scientific knowledge and ensuring the safety of our spacecraft instruments and, most importantly, our astronauts.”
Firefly’s instruments will include studies on how landing thrusters affect lunar soil, the adherence of dust particles to spacecraft surfaces, and the effectiveness of electrodynamic techniques in removing contamination in the lunar environment. Additionally, a drill will measure soil temperatures, and a unique sample collection system aims to capture surface particles without the need for traditional retrieval systems. Other instruments will test radiation tolerance, process GPS data, aid in positioning, and provide X-ray images of solar wind interactions with Earth’s magnetic field.
In addition to the upcoming Blue Ghost mission, Firefly secures a $130 million CLPS contract for a second flight in 2026, targeting the moon’s far side with the Blue Ghost lander and an orbital spacecraft named Elytra. Another contract worth $179 million is allocated for a Blue Ghost lander, rover, and orbiter.”Eventually, the commercial potential of the moon will be realized,” Kim emphasized. “Numerous self-sustaining business plans will emerge, making it an ideal location for testing new space missions and serving as a stepping stone for Mars exploration.”
An artistic representation of the Blue Ghost’s presence on the lunar surface adds to the anticipation of Firefly’s groundbreaking missions.Blue Ghost marks the first of three privately-developed landers, all successfully launched within the recent weeks. Accompanying Blue Ghost on its journey was another moon lander, “Resilience,” launched on the same Falcon 9 rocket last January.
Austin-based iSpace. The company launched its initial lander to the lunar surface last year, only for it to crash due to a software glitch that caused it to run out of fuel. The Resilience lander, aptly named, followed a different trajectory compared to the Blue Ghost, utilizing lunar gravity to reach the desired descent orbit for a landing attempt in May. Another lunar lander, Athena, developed by Houston-based Intuitive Machines, was recently sent into space via a Falcon 9 rocket and is anticipated to land on the moon on March 6. Intuitive Machines’ first lander, Odysseus, made a successful landing on the moon previously, but unfortunately tipped over during touchdown, hindering completion of all planned research tasks. Athena’s funding, to a large extent, came from NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program, which agreed to provide the company with $62.5 million to transport a sophisticated drill and mass spectrometer to the moon. In addition to this, NASA granted Nokia a $15 million technology contract to test cellular communications on the moon and allocated another $41 million to Intuitive Machines for a small rocket-powered “hopper” that will explore ice deposits in a permanently shadowed crater. Recent reports have emerged regarding the preliminary autopsy findings in the tragic deaths of Gene Hackman and his wife. Additionally, tensions were high during a heated meeting between former President Trump and President Zelenskyy in the Oval Office, as detailed in a special report. Moreover, the iconic rollercoaster Kingda Ka at Six Flags has been announced to be imploded.
