SpaceX launches 2 private lunar landers from US, Japan to space

Elon Musk-led SpaceX on Wednesday successfully launched two private lunar landers from the US and Japan to space.

Firefly Aerospace's Blue Ghost and ispace’s Resilience lifted off aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from NASA's Kennedy Space Center (KSC) on Florida's Space Coast at 1:11 a.m. EST (11:41 am IST).

"SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket has lifted off from pad 39A in Cape Canaveral and Blue Ghost is on its way to orbit! Go Ghost Riders in the sky! #BGM1 #GhostRiders," Firefly said, in a post on social media platform X.

Blue Ghost is Firefly's first mission to the moon. It is also part of NASA's Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) programme.

In 2023, NASA awarded Texas-based Firefly about $93.3 million to deliver a suite of 10 science investigations and technology demonstrations to the Moon.

Blue Ghost is now carrying to space 10 NASA research and technology payloads designed to further the space agency's understanding of the lunar environment, as it plans to send astronauts back to the moon as a part of the Artemis Programme.

“There it goes: our post-holiday delivery aboard Blue Ghost begins its journey to the Moon!” said NASA in a post on X.

“In addition to providing information about the Moon, the data these instruments will capture could help us on Earth by providing insights into how space weather impacts our planet,” it added.

Meanwhile, Resilience is ispace’s second lunar mission. Its first Hakuto-R lander made it to lunar orbit in March 2023 but crashed during its touchdown attempt a month later.

While Blue Ghost is expected to attempt a touchdown in Mare Crisium ("Sea of Crises"), on the northeastern part of the moon's near side in about two months, Resilience aims to touch down in Mare Frigoris ("Sea of Cold"), in the moon's northern hemisphere, about 4.5 months from now.

Houston-based Intuitive Machines is planning to launch the IM-2 mission in February, while Pittsburgh-based company Astrobotic is also likely to make another lunar landing attempt with the Griffin Mission One mission.