“Goodnight, Odie”: Odysseus lander’s historic moon mission involves an finish

What simply occurred? After changing into the primary American craft to land on the lunar floor since Apollo 17 in 1972, and the primary ever business craft to attain such a feat, the Odysseus lander has powered down and should by no means wake once more, bringing an finish to its historic mission.

At 6:23 p.m. ET on February 22, 2024, the Odysseus lander grew to become the primary non-governmental US craft to make a profitable delicate touchdown on the moon. Constructed by Texas-based Intuitive Machines, Odysseus was meant to function on the lunar floor for round seven to 10 days, however after a bit of over six days, the batteries had drained and the machine was shut down.

Whereas roundly hailed as successful, the record-setting lander did face points. Throughout its descent, a laser steering system failed and operators needed to swap to an experimental LIDAR system, which was supposed to be used solely in a tech demo. Worse than that, the touchdown was too abrupt and at the very least one in all its six legs smashed – resulting in the craft toppling over.

This compromised place is the primary purpose why the lander has been shut down early; its photo voltaic panels weren’t in a position to generate sufficient energy to maintain up with the calls for of the on-board devices, all of which survived the touchdown intact.

On Thursday, the facility lastly ran out, and Odysseus – or ‘Odie’ because it’s affectionately recognized – shut down. Intuitive Machines stated that Odysseus’ closing transmission was a “becoming farewell” as they shared a charming picture despatched from the lunar floor, exhibiting the solar and a crescent Earth overhead.

Earlier than its energy was depleted, Odysseus accomplished a becoming farewell transmission. Acquired immediately, this picture from February twenty second showcases the crescent Earth within the backdrop, a delicate reminder of humanity’s presence within the universe.

Goodnight, Odie. We hope to listen to from you… pic.twitter.com/RwOWsH1TSz

– Intuitive Machines (@Int_Machines) February 29, 2024

In line with Intuitive Machines, there’s a slim likelihood that the craft will get up in two to 3 weeks. The moon’s south pole, the place Odysseus landed, is about to go darkish for a ‘lunar evening’ and will not get daylight for 2 weeks. Throughout the subsequent lunar day, it is doable that Odysseus will obtain sufficient mild to its photo voltaic cells to energy again up once more, however it’s unlikely given the craft’s orientation.

No matter whether or not or not it revives, Intuitive Machines has put out an announcement calling the mission an “unequivocal success.” The corporate’s CEO, Steve Altemus, stated, “I’m emboldened for the way forward for the U.S. and worldwide lunar economic system and Intuitive Machines’ future.”

The corporate says that Odysseus “validated the efficiency” of a proprietary propulsion system, and it landed nearer to the lunar south pole than another craft in historical past – a major achievement given NASA’s Artemis program is concentrating on the area for its human missions within the coming years.

After some memorable moments, this explicit odyssey is at an finish. Writing on X, Intuitive Machines stated, “Goodnight, Odie. We hope to listen to from you once more.”