Intuitive Machines’ Lunar Lander Separates from SpaceX Falcon 9 Rocket 

At approximately 8:01 p.m. EST, Intuitive Machines’ lunar lander separated from SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket, powered on approximately 12 minutes later, and will continue its weeklong journey to the Moon. Aboard the lander is NASA science and technology as part of the agency’s CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative and Artemis campaign.  

Also launching as a rideshare on the mission, NASA’s Lunar Trailblazer spacecraft separated from the launch vehicle at 8:04 p.m. EST and will also continue its journey to lunar orbit where it will map the distribution of the different forms of water on the Moon.  

Athena is expected to land on the lunar surface on Thursday, March 6. Among their second lunar delivery, the IM-2 mission will be one of the first on site, or in-situ, demonstrations of resource detection on the Moon. A drill and mass spectrometer will measure the potential presence of volatiles or gases from lunar soil in Mons Mouton, a lunar plateau near the Moon’s South Pole. In addition, a passive Laser Retroreflector Array on the top deck of the lander will bounce laser light back at any orbiting or incoming spacecraft to give future spacecraft a permanent reference point on the lunar surface. Other technology instruments on this delivery will demonstrate a robust surface communications system and deploy a propulsive drone that can hop across the lunar surface. 

This concludes our live launch coverage. Additional updates will be shared on the Artemis blog during lunar transit and descent. Continue to follow along for more CLPS updates: nasa.gov/clps.