A robotic private spacecraft meant to gather critical data for humanity’s return to the moon toppled over upon landing, cutting the mission short, its operator Intuitive Machines (IM) confirmed on Friday. The failed mission presents a setback in America’s goal to put humans on the moon in mid-2027. IM said in a statement that Athena is not expected to recharge due to “the direction of the sun, the orientation of the solar panels, and extreme cold temperatures in the crater.” The probe missed its target landing site by about 250 miles when it touched down near the moon’s south pole on Thursday. Athena was initially sending data and charging its battery despite the botched landing, and there were hopes it could still serve a purpose. But IM soon confirmed that spacecraft was on its side. The Guardian reports that Athena’s failure was almost identical to the fate of IM’s Odysseus spacecraft, which broke a leg and fell over during its landing in Feb. 2024. Athena was set to conduct key scientific experiments, vital for NASA as it plans to send humans to the moon for the first time since 1972.
