Continuing Saga: Fate of US Lunar Lander Hangs in the Balance

January 13, 2024

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- Authored by Issam AHMED

An interesting question is posed: Could this be the miniaturized spacecraft that unexpectedly survives?

A small-scale American lunar lander has maintained its journey in outer space despite a significant fuel leak triggered by an onboard explosion at the start of its travel. It continues to take photos of itself and run scientific instruments while moving through space.

Astrobotic, the company behind the creation of the Peregrine robot, conceded that a controlled lunar touchdown is no longer attainable. However, a likely 'hard landing' or crash is not off the table, and this possibility has captivated space enthusiasts.

'For over 4 days now, Peregrine has been operational in space,' stated Astrobotic during its most recent update on Friday, while adding that it remained 'stable and fully functioning.'

The company has managed to prolong the lifespan of the spacecraft beyond their initial expectations. This has been possible due to the decreasing rate of fuel loss as the tank's pressure falls.

The US, German and Mexican space agencies have meanwhile started running the scientific instruments they intended for lunar use.

'The scientific tools provided by NASA that are present on board will offer important experience, technical understanding, and scientific data for future CLPS lunar deliveries,' conveyed Joel Kearns, NASA's deputy associate administrator for exploration.

Commercial Lunar Payload Services is a pilot NASA program through which Astrobotic received a payment exceeding $100 million for transporting NASA's Peregrine hardware, part of the plan to incubate a commercial lunar economy and cut down NASA's own costs.

The private company, Astrobotic, is the third to have a soft landing fail, following an Israeli non-profit and a Japanese firm.

Despite this setback, NASA officials have reemphasized their approach of 'more attempts equate to better chances of success.' The following try by Houston-based Intuitive Machines is scheduled for February launch.

Astrobotic is set for yet another chance to succeed in November when it conveys NASA's VIPER rover to the lunar south pole using its Griffin lander.

The Pittsburgh-centered company has so far remained silent about where Peregrine is aimed to go, allowing spectators to do their own forecasting.

Tony Dunn, a hobbyist astronomer, has used data freely shared by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) to chart the spacecraft’s present trajectory. He posted a graphic on a social media platform indicating a potential collision with the moon on January 23.

'But the prediction remains uncertain due to the leaking fuel, which could potentially deflect it off the course,' he mentioned to AFP.

Alternatively, Astrobotic might deliberately steer Peregrine in a different direction, potentially passing the moon for interplanetary space.

If there is a hard lunar landing, it can fulfill the needs of some of Astrobotic's customers like those transporting human ashes and DNA to the moon. However, it might upset others, like the Navajo Nation, who have criticized this cargo as 'defiling' of the celestial entity.

'I reckon it would be unfortunate if they end their faltering mission by scattering debris on the lunar surface,' expressed Justin Walsh, a professor of archaeology, space studies, and art history at Chapman University and Ad Astra Fellow at USC. He pointed out that humankind has left approximately 180 tons of material on the lunar surface since the Soviet Union's first impactor crashed in 1959.

© 2024 AFP