As part of NASA’s commercial lunar payload services initiative, Astrobotic’s Peregrine lander launched on United Launch Alliance’s (ULA) Vulcan rocket at 2:18 a.m. EST from Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. [Courtesy: NASA]
Key Takeaways:
The first U.S. commercial lunar payload services (CLPS) mission, Astrobotic’s Peregrine lander, successfully launched on United Launch Alliance’s (ULA) Vulcan rocket with a payload of NASA instruments.
Hours into the mission, a "propulsion anomaly" occurred, threatening the lander's ability to achieve a stable sun-pointing orientation and potentially preventing a soft landing on the moon, though an improvised maneuver successfully reoriented its solar panels.
The launch also marked the inaugural certification flight of ULA's Vulcan rocket and carries 20 diverse payloads from multiple international customers.
If successful in its planned February 23 landing attempt, Peregrine would be the first U.S. lander to reach the moon in over 50 years.
The first U.S. commercial lunar payload services (CLPS) mission launched before dawn Monday, headed to the moon with a payload of NASA instruments to study the lunar surface.
Hours into the mission, however, a “propulsion anomaly” potentially threatened the success of the lander reaching the moon’s surface as planned.
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