The first American attempt to land on the Moon in more than 50 years may be doomed to failure, after the spacecraft suffered a “critical” fuel leak shortly after liftoff on Monday.
The lunar lander, called Peregrine and built by Pittsburgh-based Astrobotic Technology, was also supposed to become the first NASA-funded commercial mission to the Moon when it lifted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida before dawn.
The last time the United States launched a moon landing mission was in 1972.
But problems arose after its successful separation from United Launch Alliance’s Vulcan rocket.
The launch team discovered a “propulsion anomaly” that hindered its ability to point Peregrine’s solar panels toward the sun to charge its battery, the company explained in X.
A United Launch Alliance Vulcan rocket lifting off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on Jan. 8, 2024. Craig Bailey/Florida Today via AP
While Astrobotic worked frantically to resolve the issue, Peregrine’s battery was reaching critically low levels.
The company managed to devise and execute “an improvised maneuver” to properly orient the ship’s solar panels, which initially appeared to be successful.
However, in a follow-up post an hour after the hopeful update, Astrobotic revealed that Peregrine’s propulsion system had suffered “a critical loss of propellant” and that the problem would likely jeopardize its mission. to make a soft landing on the moon.
“The team is working to try to stabilize this loss, but given the situation, we have prioritized maximizing the science and data we can capture,” the company said.
The Peregrine lunar lander at the Astrobotic Technology facility in Pittsburgh. Jordan K Reynolds/Astrobotic Technology via AP The maiden flight of the Vulcan rocket as seen from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. Malcolm Denmark/Florida Today via AP
“We are currently evaluating what alternative mission profiles may be feasible at this time.”
Astrobotic had originally planned to take Peregrine to the moon on February 23.
The mission, funded by NASA to the tune of $108 million, was tasked with delivering technology and scientific experiments ahead of a series of manned missions to the moon that the US space agency is planning as part of its Artemis program.
Peregrine also carried the ashes and DNA of deceased space enthusiasts, including “Star Trek” creator Gene Roddenberry and science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke, as well as a rock fragment from Mount Everest.
The United States has not undertaken a lunar landing mission since the launch of Apollo 17 in December 1972, when astronauts Gene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt became the 11th and 12th men to set foot on the lunar surface.
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Source: vtt.edu.vn