Firefly Aerospace has published a magnificent image obtained by the Blue Ghost mission. It shows the Earth and its reflection on the solar panels of the vehicle.
Blue Ghost was launched on January 15. Its mission is funded under a contract awarded to Firefly Aerospace under the CLPS program. On board the spacecraft are ten NASA-granted scientific instruments to be delivered to the lunar surface.
After spending nearly a month in Earth orbit, Blue Ghost performed a maneuver on February 8 that put it on a flight path to the Moon. The vehicle should reach it by mid-month.
Before leaving the vicinity of our planet, Blue Ghost took some pretty spectacular selfies. It captures the Earth and its reflection on the vehicle’s solar panels. If you look closely, you can see the Blue Ghost’s destination in the image. In addition to our planet, the spacecraft also captured the Moon, which was above the Earth’s disk at the time of imaging.
The flight plan calls for Blue Ghost to perform a maneuver that will put it into a permanent orbit around the Moon. The spacecraft will spend 16 days there. This time will be spent on equipment tests and preparation for landing, which is scheduled for March 2.
Blue Ghost will land near Mare Crisium, which is located in the northeastern part of the visible side of the Moon. The mission’s science program includes studying the properties of the regolith and the structure of the lunar interior, conducting an experiment to pick up GPS signals, determining the exact distance between the Earth and the Moon, and testing a radiation-resistant computer. Blue Ghost is designed to operate for one lunar day (14 Earth days).
It is important to note that Firefly is already preparing its second lunar mission. Its launch is currently scheduled for 2026.
