After more than five decades, a profound new era in space exploration could soon unfold as the robotic lander, named Athena, is set to make its final descent toward the surface of the moon. This landing is particularly significant, as it would represent the second lunar touchdown for a private U.S. company this week, continuing a trend of increasing commercial involvement in space exploration.
The lander is operated by Intuitive Machines, a Houston-based company that made headlines last year by achieving an important milestone for commercial space travel; they became the first private-sector entity to successfully soft-land a vehicle on the moon. According to a social media update from Intuitive Machines, Athena is scheduled to touch down around 11:30 a.m. Central Time (12:30 p.m. Eastern Time) on Thursday. A live stream of the event is planned, coorganized by NASA and Intuitive Machines, which will commence approximately one hour prior to landing.
Should the landing go successfully, the 15-foot-tall (4.6-meter) Athena will join another lunar lander, Blue Ghost, developed by Firefly Aerospace, based in Cedar Park, Texas, which completed a safe touchdown just days earlier. This convergence on the moon’s surface illustrates the growing capability and ambition of commercial spaceflight companies. Although both Athena and Blue Ghost are targeting the near side of the moon, they will be positioned approximately 2,000 miles (3,200 kilometers) apart, with Blue Ghost located near the lunar equator and Athena positioned closer to the lunar south pole than any astronaut or previous vehicle has managed to venture.
It’s important to note that lunar landings pose a significant challenge, with around half of all attempts—whether by governmental agencies or commercial companies—having ended in failure. Early Thursday morning, Athena performed an engine burn that set it on a trajectory toward the moon’s surface. Following this maneuver, the lander began a coasting phase for about an hour before entering its final descent, during which it will utilize various sensors and cameras to navigate the rocky terrain of the moon’s surface.
The task of landing is not trivial; Athena must shed speed rapidly, lowering its velocity by approximately 4,000 miles per hour (1,800 meters per second) prior to making contact with the lunar surface. The area where it aims to land, specifically a 60-mile-wide (100-kilometer-wide) plateau known as Mons Mouton, sits about 100 miles (160 kilometers) from the south pole. This location is particularly intriguing to scientists, as it is believed to potentially hold substantial reserves of water ice—vital resources that could be converted into drinking water, breathable air, or even rocket fuel for future missions into deeper space.
Once on the surface, the Athena lander will initiate a “scouting mission” of sorts, equipped with an array of robotic tools including a drill, hopper, and rover. Its primary objective will be to confirm the presence of water ice in its immediate surroundings. The lander is intended to operate for a period of approximately 10 days, until lunar nightfall casts it into darkness.
The significance of Athena’s mission is amplified by the accomplishments of its predecessor, known as Odysseus, or “Odie,” which also targeted the lunar south pole last year but faced its share of challenges. Odie ultimately landed on its side due to navigational errors stemming from wiring issues with its laser rangefinder. This mishap has not only colored the history of Intuitive Machines but has also served as a learning experience as the company looks forward to this new mission. In contrast, Firefly Aerospace has enjoyed a more favorable landing with their Blue Ghost vehicle, which has been proudly declared the “first fully successful” commercial lander on the moon.
The ongoing collaboration between these two Texas-based companies illustrates a spirit of unity and cooperation within the industry. Both Aeronautics companies are working hand in hand under NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services Program (CLPS), which is designed to encourage the development of cost-effective robotic spacecraft capable of probing the lunar surface before NASA itself returns humans to the moon as part of its Artemis III mission—planed for mid-2027.
Later on the day of the touchdown, Athena is expected to deploy a rover named the Mobile Autonomous Prospecting Platform (MAPP), built by the Colorado-based company Lunar Outpost. MAPP’s objectives include testing new cellular communications technology, creating a 3D lunar surface map, and taking high-resolution photographs. It will also collect a small soil sample, which NASA has surprisingly agreed to purchase for the symbolic price of one dollar, marking a historic milestone as the first commercial sale of extraterrestrial resources.
Lunar Outpost’s CEO, Justin Cyrus, expressed excitement over this pioneering venture, noting that the dollar received from NASA is the sole government funding the company will receive for this mission, stating, “This is our first shot, and the fact that this is a commercially funded rover