Firefly Aerospace has published a striking video transmitted to Earth by the Blue Ghost spacecraft. It shows a flight over the back side of the Moon.
Blue Ghost was launched on January 15, 2025. Its mission is implemented under a contract awarded to NASA as part of the CLPS program. The vehicle carries a payload of 10 scientific instruments to be delivered to the lunar surface.
After several weeks in Earth orbit, the vehicle made a flyby to the Moon. Subsequently, it performed a number of maneuvers necessary to prepare for landing. One of them was carried out on February 24. During it, the spacecraft entered a circular low lunar orbit. The published video was taken while performing this maneuver. At the moment of video shooting, the device was at an altitude of 100 km, flying over the back side of the Moon. The video playback speed is increased by 10 times.
In the frame you can see numerous craters of all possible sizes against the vast blackness of space. Astronaut Buzz Aldrin once called this landscape “splendid desolation.” Since the Moon has no atmosphere and no plate tectonics, shock formations persist on its surface for billions of years.
At the same time, the video does not show another familiar attribute of the Moon — dark areas, traditionally called seas. In reality, they are vast plains covered with solidified lava. The fact is that almost all seas are located on the visible side of the Moon. The reason for this asymmetry between the hemispheres is one of the long-standing mysteries of the moon.
In addition to the Moon, Blue Ghost’s attitude control system engines and radiators are also in the frame. You can see how they move to protect the apparatus’ systems from extreme temperatures.
Blue Ghost is scheduled to land on the Moon on March 2. The place of its landing will be Mare Crisium. The apparatus is designed to operate for 14 days.
