This illustration provided by Astrobotic Technology in 2024 depicts the Peregrine lunar lander on the surface of the Moon. Credit: Astrobotic Technology via AP
A crippling fuel leak forced a US company to abandon plans to land a spacecraft on the Moon on Tuesday.
Astrobotic Technology’s lander began losing fuel shortly after launch on Monday. The spacecraft also encountered problems keeping its solar array pointed at the sun and producing solar power.
“Given the propellant leak, there is unfortunately no chance of a soft landing on the Moon,” Astrobotic said in a statement.
Astrobotic was aiming for a February 23 lunar landing, following a diverted, fuel-efficient flight to the Moon. It could have been the first American moon landing in more than 50 years, and the first by a private company. A second lander from a Houston company is expected to launch next month.
Only four countries have successfully landed on the moon.
In this image released by Astrobotic Technology, an image from a mounted camera shows a disrupted section of insulation on the Peregrine lander, as it was en route to landing on the moon, Monday, January 8, 2024. Credit : Astrobotic Technology via AP
The company said the new goal is to keep the lander operational as long as possible in space, in order to learn as much as possible for its next mission in about a year. Flight controllers managed to keep the spacecraft pointed toward the sun and its battery fully charged, with another 40 hours of operations planned.
The Pittsburgh-based company did not explain why the Peregrine lander’s propulsion system failed just hours after the flight began.
NASA paid Astrobotic $108 million to perform its experiments on the Moon on this mission, which is part of the agency’s commercial lunar program.
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