The emergency landing of Intuitive Machines’ Athena module has permanently disabled the little robot. The 45-centimeter Mobile Autonomous Prospecting Platform (MAPP) lunar rover from startup Lunar Outpost has successfully survived its flight. But during a hard landing near the Moon’s South Pole, the Athena spacecraft flipped onto its side, leaving MAPP trapped in the metal.
“Our data paints a clear picture that MAPP survived the landing attempt and would have driven on the lunar surface and achieved our mission objectives had it been given the opportunity,” the company said.
Our Lunar Voyage 1 MAPP rover successfully made it to the Moon, collected data from the lunar surface and in transit, and proved MAPP was ready to drive!
— Lunar Outpost (@LunarOutpostInc) March 7, 2025
This mission was to be historic: MAPP could be the first private robot on the Moon and the first U.S. rover since the Apollo missions. Instead, it remained forever in Athena’s shadow. Instead of its planned ten-day trip, the landing module lasted only 24 hours, losing its ability to charge due to a damaged solar panel.
Despite the fateful circumstances, the vehicle managed to transmit valuable data back to Earth, proving its performance in space conditions. Among its tasks were: testing Nokia’s experimental 4G network and collecting samples of lunar soil – regolith. The last Lunar Outpost planned to symbolically sell it to NASA for $1 to solidify private companies’ right to space resources.
However, the companies are not giving up. Intuitive Machines is preparing two more lunar launches before 2027, and Lunar Outpost dreams of exploring the mysterious Reiner Gamma zone. For now, MAPP’s story is a reminder: space demands perfection. Even one small mistake can bury huge ambitions – literally under the wreckage of its own spacecraft.
We previously reported on how Intuitive Machines posted a farewell photo of Athena.
According to space.com
