The latest images of a doomed lunar lander have been published after Odysseus failed to land on the moon last week.
Houston-based Initiative Machines shared stunning images of Earth’s natural satellite, captured by the spacecraft as it descended to the surface.
During America’s first successful mission to the moon since Apollo in 1972, the spacecraft tumbled while trying to land. It fell sideways on the landscape and was unable to carry out its mission of searching for lunar water.
Based on the position of the Earth and the sun, officials expect the spacecraft to cease all operations Tuesday morning.
Intuitive Machines, which developed and operated the spacecraft, has shared the first images Odysseus captured as it descended to the moon
Odysseus was poised to become the first private spacecraft to land on the moon, which Initiative Machines built for $118 million.
NASA signed a contract with the Houston-based company in 2021, which saw the lunar lander lift off on February 15, 2024.
Odysseus was equipped with instruments to drill into the moon, collect samples and analyze them for signs of water that would be used by Artemis III astronauts who will arrive on the moon around 2026.
But with the vehicle likely to go dark, the mission is no longer on the table.
Odysseus is still communicating with the grounds team and Intuitive Machines, declared ‘the furthest south any vehicle has ever been’.
Shares of Houston-based Intuitive Machines fell more than 30 percent on Monday after the space exploration company said the Odysseus lunar lander had fallen over and was on its side.
But Odysseus is currently on his side due to tripping on the moon’s surface. The photo shows the company explaining the vessel’s position during Friday’s press conference
The new images from NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) Camera confirmed that Odysseus landed within 1,400 meters of the intended Malapert A landing site
Although the landing may have failed, Intuitive Machines noted that Odysseus still uncovered nine safe landing sites with the intended south polar area.
The nine landing sites may be rich in resources, which Odysseus would drill in search of water for the future astronauts – but this task is unlikely to happen because the craft tips over.
But the new images from NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) Camera confirmed that Odysseus landed within 1,400 meters of the intended Malapert A landing site.
Although the landing may have failed, Intuitive Machines noted that Odysseus had still uncovered nine safe landing sites with the intended south polar region.
One snapshot from LRO shows the spacecraft as a faint, bright dot on the moon’s surface, a spot that could possibly be its final resting place.
However, Odysseus managed to capture beautiful images of the moon before making a hard landing.
“Flight controllers plan to collect data until the lander’s solar panels are no longer exposed to light,” Intuitive Machines shared in an announcement.
“Based on the positioning of the Earth and moon, we believe flight controllers will continue to communicate with Odysseus until Tuesday morning.”
Because the craft falls over, it cannot provide continuous power because it is not near the sun.
The company, which became the first private company to land on the moon and the first from the US since 1972, said all but one of NASA’s six science and technology payloads were pointed upward and receptive to communications.
The stock of Intuitive Machine ffell 34 percent to $6.30 before the opening bell on Monday, more than offsetting gains on Friday, when nearly 99 million shares changed hands, a record for the stock.
On Friday, the total value of shares traded reached $1.01 billion, surpassing the company’s market value of about $960 million, according to LSEG data.
The stock surge occurred before the company held a press conference Friday evening to announce the news that Odysseus had not performed a soft landing, as previously reported.
Intuitive Machines revealed that one of the legs got stuck, causing it to fall on its side – just one day after a bony touchdown that was confirmed as a soft landing.
CEO Steve Altemus explained that he and his team weren’t deliberately misleading the public when they reported on America’s return to the moon’s surface on X – they were just working with old telemetry.