Odysseus is the first private spacecraft ever to land softly on Earth’s nearest neighbor.
After a nail-biting descent and a tense silence from the lunar surface, the United States is back on the moon.
Odysseus, a robotic lander built by Houston-based company Intuitive Machines, touched down near the lunar south pole this evening (Feb. 22).
It was a landmark moment for space exploration: No private spacecraft had ever soft-landed on the moon before, and an American vehicle hadn’t hit the gray dirt softly since NASA’s crewed Apollo 17 lander did so in December 1972.
“What a triumph! Odysseus has taken the moon,” NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said in a video message the agency aired just after confirmation of a successful touchdown. “This feat is a giant leap forward for all of humanity. Stay tuned!”
credits: @space, Intuitive machines
