First U.S. Lander Makes Lunar Touchdown in Over 50 Years
Ater a couple of failed attempts by other private firms over the last couple of years, a U.S. built spacecraft has successfully landed on the Moon once again. It’s the first in over 50 years and it’s just one more step before putting human boots back on the lunar surface.
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00:00 Well, after a couple of failed attempts by other private firms over the last couple of
00:07 years, a US-built spacecraft has successfully landed on the moon once again.
00:12 This video was recently released by Intuitive Machines, the company behind the lander.
00:16 The craft was launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket around a week ago, where it then
00:21 made the nearly 240,000-mile journey to the moon.
00:24 What we can confirm without a doubt is our equipment is on the surface of the moon, and
00:29 we are transmitting.
00:30 So, congratulations IMT.
00:33 The lander is named Odysseus, and it's the first US craft to land on the moon in more
00:37 than half a century.
00:38 It made a lunar touchdown near the South Pole, an area of increasing interest to astronomers
00:42 as it is believed to have possibly the highest concentrations of lunar ice.
00:46 However, the whole thing did not go off without a hitch, as the spacecraft's autonomous landing
00:50 system failed just before arrival, and engineers were forced to manage a workaround.
00:55 This was all part of a NASA-funded mission, all ahead of a human moon transit expected
00:59 in just a few years.
01:01 Of course, this is all part of NASA's broader goal to establish a human base on the lunar
01:05 surface, a jumping-off point to an eventual Mars mission.
01:09 [music]