I’m kind of glad Leslie isn’t here to cover this because it means I get to. I’m geeking out about it!
BACKGROUND: Columbia Commander Rick Husband was my neighbor in Houston. A lovely man with a lovely family. He always came around when my grandmother visited. She just loved him! My parents were actually at the shuttle launch. I couldn’t go because of school. My mom also worked at the optometrist, who did all the glasses for the astronauts! (HI, MOM!!)
Anyway, Odysseus sent back a photo of the moon. This is history, you guys.
This is the first time in over 50 years that America is on the moon.
However…we have a problem, Houston.
Odysseus tipped over. It’s still collecting data, but the mission will end after five days instead of seven:
The company said during its first post-landing news briefing on Friday that Odysseus caught the bottom of one of its six landing legs on the uneven lunar surface on final descent and tipped over, coming to rest horizontally, apparently propped up on a rock.Intuitive Machines executives speculated that the forward speed of the spacecraft on landing, about twice as fast as expected, may have been a factor in stumbling. But it remained uncertain whether use of the original laser range finders might have made a difference.In any case, Odysseus’ sideways posture substantially limited how much its solar panels were exposed to sunlight, necessary for recharging its batteries. Moreover, two of its antennae were pointed toward the ground, impeding communications with the lander, the company said on Friday.
Odysseus will also no longer have light:
Images from NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera team confirmed Odysseus completed its landing at 80.13°S and 1.44°E at a 2579 m elevation. After traveling more than 600,000 miles, Odysseus landed within 1.5 km of its intended Malapert A landing site, using a contingent laser range-finding system patched hours before landing.Flight controllers intend to collect data until the lander’s solar panels are no longer exposed to light. Based on Earth and Moon positioning, we believe flight controllers will continue to communicate with Odysseus until Tuesday morning.
CLICK HERE FOR FULL VERSION OF THIS STORY