Odysseus, which etched its name in the history books by becoming the first American US spaceship to have landed on the moon in over 50 years, might have tipped over on the surface of the Earth’s natural satellite. Steve Altemus, the CEO of Intuitive Machines, the private company that prepared the spaceship, reportedly said, “We might have fractured that landing gear and tipped over gently.”
Odysseus concluded its seven-day voyage to lunar orbit and ultimately carried out maneuvers to softly touch down near Malapert A in the Moon’s South Pole region at 5:24 p.m. CST on February 22, according to NASA. The US space agency said that the lander is in good health, harnessing solar power, and relaying data to the company’s mission control in Houston.
Sharing an update on the moon mission, Intuitive Machines said that the lunar lander is “alive and well”.
“Flight controllers are communicating and commanding the vehicle to download science data. The lander has good telemetry and solar charging. We continue to learn more about the vehicle’s specific information (Lat/Lon), overall health, and attitude (orientation).”
The historic lunar lander also captured a wide field of view image of Schomberger crater on the Moon “approximately 125 miles (200 km) uprange from the intended landing site, at approximately about 6 miles (10 km) altitude.”
(With inputs from agencies)
