Moon Landing Mishap: What Went Wrong with Athena?

The latest lunar mission faced an unexpected challenge. A privately owned spacecraft, Athena, recently attempted to land on the moon. It was carrying a drill, a drone, and rovers for NASA and other customers. The landing seemed to go smoothly at first, but things quickly took a turn for the worse. There was a glitch with the laser navigation system during the final approach. This caused some uncertainty about whether Athena was standing upright or lying on its side, similar to what happened with its predecessor. The mission control team quickly sprang into action. They turned off some of the lander’s equipment to save power while they figured out what went wrong. The lander was near the intended landing site, but its exact position and orientation were still unknown. NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter will confirm these details in the coming days. The Athena lander was launched just last week. Despite the challenges, it was still communicating with controllers and generating solar power. Mission managers are now trying to salvage the mission. They want to see if the drill can be turned on and the drone can be deployed to explore a crater. The Athena mission was part of NASA’s commercial lunar delivery program. This program aims to get NASA’s experiments to the moon’s surface and boost business opportunities in space. The commercial landers also serve as scouts for future astronaut missions under NASA’s Artemis program. This week saw two moon landings in quick succession. The first, by Firefly Aerospace, was a complete success. The second, by Intuitive Machines, faced difficulties but still managed to reach the moon. This was the second time a private company has landed on the moon this year. The Athena lander was aiming for a mountain plateau near the moon’s south pole. This area is much closer to the pole than previous landings. The exact location of the landing is still uncertain, but the lander did reach the plateau. NASA’s commercial lunar delivery program is designed to increase the number of experiments reaching the moon. The program involves low-cost missions, and NASA officials knew some might fail. However, the increased number of missions means more experiments are getting to the moon. NASA invested tens of millions of dollars in the ice drill and other instruments on Athena. They also paid an additional $62 million for the lift. Most of the experiments were from private companies, including the two rovers. The rocket-powered drone was built by Intuitive Machines. It was designed to hop into a permanently shadowed crater near the landing site to search for frozen water. To keep costs down, Intuitive Machines shared its SpaceX rocket launch with three other spacecraft. Two of these, NASA’s Lunar Trailblazer and AstroForge’s asteroid-chasing Odin, are now in trouble. Lunar Trailblazer is spinning without radio contact and won’t reach its intended orbit. Odin is also silent, and its planned asteroid flyby is unlikely. Intuitive Machines made dozens of repairs and upgrades following the company’s sideways touchdown by its first lander. Despite the challenges, the company still managed to operate briefly, ending America’s moon-landing drought of more than 50 years. The U. S. had not landed on the moon since Apollo 17 in 1972. No one else has sent astronauts to the moon, the overriding goal of NASA’s Artemis program. Only four other countries have successfully landed robotic spacecraft on the moon: Russia, China, India, and Japan. The moon landings this week are a big deal. They show that private companies are playing a bigger role in space exploration. These missions are not just about science; they are also about opening up new business opportunities in space. The challenges faced by Athena highlight the risks and uncertainties involved in space exploration. But they also show the resilience and determination of the teams involved. Despite the setbacks, the mission is still trying to achieve its goals. This is a testament to the spirit of exploration and innovation that drives space exploration.