US Spacecraft Lands on Moon for First Time in Over 50 Years

A U.S.-made spacecraft has landed on the surface of the moon for the first time in over 50 years.

The uncrewed lander Odysseus, built by Houston-based company Intuitive Machines, touched down in the moon's South Pole region on Thursday night. The spacecraft, the first private vehicle to land successfully, had experienced technical difficulties prior to the landing.

The last U.S. spacecraft to land on the moon was Apollo 17's lunar module Challenger, which landed on December 7, 1972. Astronauts Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt, the last humans to set foot on the moon, were aboard the flight.

The Context

Although U.S. missions have orbited the moon since the Apollo landings, American spacecraft have stayed off the surface since Cernan and Schmitt left on December 14, 1972. NASA and private enterprises have been preparing for a return to the moon in recent years, including new flights that will again deliver humans to the surface.

The Odysseus used a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket-powered launch vehicle to blast off from Earth on February 15. The lander carried a payload that included NASA equipment. The program is intended to help pave the way for more human exploration of the moon, which the U.S. space agency says will include the establishment of a permanent base.

Two additional Intuitive Machines "Nova C" landers, which will also use the SpaceX launch vehicles, are scheduled to reach the moon by early next year. NASA's Artemis program, which completed an uncrewed lunar orbit flight in September 2022, is working to return humans to the moon.

An attempt by Japanese company ispace to land on the moon's surface ended in a crash last year, with the company losing contact with the craft minutes before it was scheduled to touch down. The company is planning to send an additional lander to the moon later this year.

What We Know

Before initiating the landing procedure on Thursday, flight controllers for Odysseus set the spacecraft on an unscheduled additional orbit around the moon due to a malfunction in a laser instrument. Communications with the craft were lost for several minutes after it touched down on the surface at 6:23 p.m. Eastern time.

Intuitive Machines CEO Steve Altemus described the landing as "a nail-biter" in a livestream shortly after the spacecraft reached its target.

"After troubleshooting communications, flight controllers have confirmed Odysseus is upright and starting to send data," Intuitive Machines later posted to X, formerly Twitter, at 8:25 p.m. Eastern time. "Right now, we are working to downlink the first images from the lunar surface."

Newsweek reached out for comment to Intuitive Machines via email on Thursday night.

The Views

"What an outstanding effort," Altemus told his team after the landing. "I know this was a nail-biter, but we are on the surface and we are transmitting. And welcome to the moon."

Former astronaut Mae Jennison said during a CNN interview shortly after the landing that the mission was a "really exciting" demonstration of technology working toward the establishment of a permanent presence for humans on the moon.

"Your order was delivered ... to the Moon!" NASA said in a post to X. "[Intuitive Machines'] uncrewed lunar lander landed at 6:23 p.m. ET (2323 UTC), bringing NASA science to the Moon's surface. These instruments will prepare us for future human exploration of the Moon under #Artemis."

What's Next?

The second and third Intuitive Machines moon landing missions are set to take place later this year and early next year. Additional private attempts to land on the moon are planned this year, including the second attempt from ispace and missions by U.S. companies Astrobotic and Firefly.

The governments of China, India and Japan have also landed uncrewed spacecraft on the moon in recent years. NASA's Artemis program, which works with contractors from around the planet, is expected to return humans to the moon's surface before the end of the decade.

Artemis 2, which will be the first crewed spacecraft to orbit the moon in over 50 years, is scheduled to launch in September 2025. The program's first mission to land people on the moon, Artemis 3, is scheduled for September 2026. At least eight additional crewed missions are planned after that, with the goal of building a base on the surface and an eye toward eventual travel to Mars.