Leaving Earth on January 8, the Peregrine Mission One mission is already having initial difficulties. These could call into question its ability to go to the Moon and land gently.
It was a bumpy start for the Peregrine Mission One lunar program, which left Earth on the morning of January 8, 2024. Astrobotic Technology, the American company in charge of the project, reported a problem during a first progress update made on X (formerly Twitter). The company mentions a difficulty during an orientation phase of the probe.
A propulsion problem and a battery problem
“ Unfortunately, an anomaly occurred which prevented Astrobotic from performing a stable Sun pointing operation “, we can read. Teams are mobilized to monitor the situation and provide new information as data is acquired and analyzed. A new stage point arrived at the end of the afternoon.
The path currently being considered is that of a malfunction in the propulsion – which led to the instability of the orientation in relation to the Sun. If so, it’s potentially serious for the future. Astrobotic fears that the moon landing will go badly. And to this is added another annoyance: the battery. It is greatly reduced.
“ As the team works to resolve the problem, the spacecraft’s battery reaches a very low operational level », Reports the company. The team attempted an improvised maneuver to reorient the solar panels towards the Sun “. This operation took place before an expected sequence of communications interruption. Since then, it has been radio silence.
We will have to wait to find out what happens next. But even if the maneuver is successful, which would recharge the probe’s batteries, there will still be the problem of propulsion, if it is proven. This is crucial to ensure a smooth landing on the surface of the satellite. Otherwise, we will be entitled to a new crater.
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