The Nova-C lander from the private North American company Intuitive Machines was launched on Thursday February 15 at 1:06 a.m. after a delay of one day e following technical problems. The spacecraft was pulled out of Earth’s gravity by a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket as part of the IM-1 mission.
After a first unsuccessful attempt, takeoff has finally taken place for Intuitive Machines, which could be the first private company to land on the Moon. In liaison with the control room in Houston (Texas), the lander’s engine performed a first push and will adjust the trajectory for an arrival scheduled for February 22.
Nova-C measures more than 4 m high and carries private sculptures by artist Jeff Koons. The machine mainly carries scientific instruments from NASA, Intuitive Machines’ main client, which now uses several private companies to transport equipment to the Moon at lower cost. . This contract thus amounts to 118 million dollars.
The ice of the lunar South Pole will be studied
The scientific instruments will be used by NASA astronauts who will land on the Moon in a few years as part of the Artemis program. They will make it possible to study water in the form of ice from the lunar South Pole for the benefit of later exploitation.
This mission is taking place as India recently reached the Moon, a first for the country. Intuitive Machines follows in the footsteps of Astrobotic, another private American company under contract with NASA, which failed to land on the star. Firefly Aerospace should also try its luck in 2024.