by Astrobotic Technology, the company that developed the first lunar lander to launch from the United States in five decades, said its spacecraft has suffered a “critical” loss of propellant while trying to correct itself after encountering a major problem in space. .
Just hours after launching from Florida toward the moon early Monday morning, the company announced that the spacecraft was in danger. The lunar lander, called Peregrine, was unable to move into a position facing the sun, likely due to a propulsion problem, according to the company. The wayward orientation prevented the spacecraft from charging its batteries.
“Unfortunately, it appears that the failure within the propulsion system is causing a critical loss of propellant,” Astrobotic said in a mission update posted shortly after 1 p.m. ET. “The team is working to try to stabilize this loss, but given the situation, we have prioritized maximizing the science and data we can capture. “We are currently evaluating what alternative mission profiles may be feasible at this time.”
That could mean the company will not attempt to land the Peregrine lander on the moon, as it was expected to do on February 23.
From launch to lunar trajectory
Astrobotic was initially able to make contact with the vehicle after its launch at 2:18 a.m. ET, but then the mission ran into a problem that left the vehicle pointing away from the sun and unable to charge its battery.
In an update posted to social media on Monday, Astrobotic said it believes the likely cause of the problem “is a propulsion anomaly that, if proven true, threatens the spacecraft’s ability to soft-land on the Moon.” .
Astrobotic initially said the anomaly, an aerospace term for a problem or problem that threatens a mission, “prevented Astrobotic from achieving a stable orientation toward the sun,” the company posted on X at 9:37 a.m. ET. It added that its engineers were fixing the problem in real time.
A sun-facing position is usually necessary to provide solar energy to charge a spacecraft’s batteries.
Mission controllers then “developed and executed an improvised maneuver to reorient the solar panels toward the Sun,” according to the company.
That effort was successful, Astrobotic said.
“The team’s improvised maneuver managed to reorient Peregrine’s solar panel toward the Sun. We are now charging the battery,” the company said in an update posted at 12:34 p.m. ET.
Still, the company said it must fix the underlying propulsion problem. The spacecraft would need to use its onboard thrusters to make a soft landing on the moon.
A successful first leg
The lunar lander, named Peregrine after the world’s fastest bird, appeared to have a completely successful first leg of its journey after lifting off atop a Vulcan Centaur rocket developed by the Lockheed Martin and Boeing United Launch Alliance joint venture.
It was the first flight of a Vulcan Centaur rocket, a new ULA vehicle designed to replace its aging line of rockets.
The company confirmed shortly after 3 a.m. ET that the Vulcan Centaur performed as expected, placing the Peregrine lunar lander into a translunar injection orbit, according to ULA. It’s a precisely timed engine firing that pushed the Peregrine lander onto a path in Earth’s orbit that should allow it to synchronize with the Moon about 384,400 kilometers (238,855 miles) away.
The Peregrine lander was then expected to fire its own onboard thrusters, using up to three maneuvers to signal its trajectory.
In a statement, Astrobotic said Peregrine successfully began communicating with NASA’s Deep Space Network, activated its avionics systems, and “thermal, propulsion, and power controllers all powered up and performed as expected.”
“Following successful activation of the propulsion systems, Peregrine entered a safe operational state,” the company said.
However, it was after that that the Peregrine lander experienced the “anomaly.”
What is at stake in the pilgrim mission
Pittsburgh-based Astrobotic Technology developed Peregrine under a $108 million contract with NASA. The vehicle was designed from the beginning to be relatively cheap, with the goal of fulfilling NASA’s vision of reducing the cost of putting a robotic lander on the Moon by asking the private sector to compete for such contracts.
Astrobotic CEO John Thornton told CNN on January 2 that he considered this first launch a test mission.
“This really is like a 50-50 shots on goal approach, where it’s really more about the success of the industry, not a specific mission,” Thornton said.
Joel Kearns, deputy associate administrator for exploration in NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, issued a statement Monday saying, “Every success and setback is an opportunity to learn and grow. “We will use this lesson to fuel our efforts to advance Moon science, exploration and commercial development.”
In a statement, NASA added that it plans to continue sharing updates as more information becomes available and expects space agency Administrator Bill Nelson to comment later today.
It is not yet clear whether Astrobotic will still be able to attempt to land Peregrine. In the interview with CNN, Thornton said the spacecraft was designed to perform three propulsion maneuvers in orbit, but nothing more. Expending additional fuel would leave the vehicle without enough power to make a controlled landing.
Thornton, who previously said this Peregrine mission cost Astrobotic more money than it made, also told CNN what it would mean for the company if this mission fails.
“It will certainly have some impact on our relationships and our ability to secure additional missions in the future,” Thornton said. “It certainly wouldn’t be the end of the business, but it would be a challenge.”
If the lunar mission fails, it could be a major loss not only for Astrobotic, but also for NASA and other countries and institutions with payloads aboard the Peregrine lander.
A loss of the lander so early in the mission would also mean that Astrobotic will not be able to test the vehicle’s ability to land on the lunar surface.
On board the Peregrine vehicle are five NASA scientific instruments and 15 other payloads from various organizations and countries. Commercial payloads on the lander include souvenirs and even human remains that customers had paid to fly to the lunar surface.
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