Astrobotic announced the landing date of its Peregrine lunar spacecraft. If launched on December 24, it will land on the moon on January 25.
The Peregrine lander was created as part of a contract under the CLPS program. As part of it, NASA orders cargo delivery to the Moon from private companies. The height of the Peregrine is 1.9 m, width is 2.5 m, weight (including fuel) is 1280 kg. It is equipped with five engines designed to perform maneuvers in interplanetary space and a soft landing on the lunar surface. The lander has a variety of ports designed to hold various scientific equipment. In total, Peregrine can carry a payload weighing up to 265 kg.
As part of its first mission, Peregrine will deliver 21 cargo to the Moon. Six of them are provided by NASA, the rest by various commercial customers and scientific institutions. They include various instruments, a miniature rover, a memorial plaque, and even a coin on which one bitcoin is “loaded”.
At the moment, the launch of Peregrine is scheduled for December 24th. It will be the first cargo to be sent into space by the new Vulcan rocket. If the launch is successful, the spacecraft will reach the Moon in a few days. However, its landing will take place only on January 25. This is due to the need to wait for the right lighting conditions in the landing zone, which is located in the area of the Gruithuisen Domes. These formations are volcanic domes located on the northeastern edge of the Oceanus Procellarum.
If successful, Peregrine can become the first private spacecraft to land on the Moon. Its main competitor is the IM-1 mission from Intuitive Machines. Its launch is scheduled for January 12.
According to https://phys.org
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