On March 6, the Athena probe, owned by Intuitive Machines, landed near the Moon’s South Pole. It managed to reach the surface. But, apparently, it tipped over on its side during landing, repeating the fate of its predecessor.
Athena was launched on February 27. This is Intuitive Machines’ second lunar mission. Last February, the Odysseus probe built by its specialists became the first private vehicle in history to land on the Moon. Unfortunately, during the landing there were some problems that led to the vehicle breaking one of the supports and landing in an abnormal position. Nevertheless, Odysseus accomplished a significant portion of its scientific program.
The Athena mission was to continue this success. Mons Mouton, a mountain located 160 km from the Moon’s South Pole, was chosen as the landing site. Its height from base to peak is 6 km. Mons Mouton is believed to have formed as part of the rim of the South Pole-Aitken impact basin. It is the largest lunar crater, measuring 2,400 by 2,050 kilometers. Mons Mouton is therefore of great interest to scientists who are trying to reconstruct the events that formed the early Moon.
During most of the flight, Athena’s descent proceeded normally. However, after the vehicle reached the surface, engineers began to get conflicting data. They indicated that the engine was idling, which required the vehicle to be upright, while the data from the inertial measurement unit indicated that the vehicle was on its side.
At a briefing 3.5 hours after landing, Intuitive Machines CEO Stephen Altemus said the vehicle “lay on its side a little bit,” although its exact orientation remains uncertain. It is still unknown what exactly caused the Athena to overturn.
Engineers are currently trying to determine the exact position and orientation of the vehicle and how much power it is capable of generating. This will help determine which Athena payloads will be able to operate and to what extent.
After moon landing, Athena was to conduct a number of experiments and technology demonstrations. These include taking a soil sample to search for traces of water, collecting radiation data and deploying the first 4G network on the Moon. Athena was also supposed to release several mobile devices.
For the second landing with a tipping in a row, Intuitive Machines stock has fallen significantly in price. The fact that the Blue Ghost spacecraft, built by Firefly Aerospace, had successfully landed on the Moon just four days earlier probably played its part. It has a different design, which has clearly proven to be much more successful.
