By cryptoadmin 
Intuitive Machines, the corporate that pulled off the first-ever business moon touchdown this time final 12 months with its Odysseus spacecraft, is gearing up for one more shot at touching the lunar floor. Its second flight below NASA’s Industrial Lunar Payload Providers (CLPS) program is scheduled to take off no sooner than Wednesday February 26, launched by a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. The corporate is as soon as once more sending one in every of its Nova-C landers, this one nicknamed Athena. It’s anticipated to take a couple of week for Athena to journey to the moon, earlier than it makes a touchdown try round March 6.
To the Moon! On Feb. 26, NASA science and tech are set to launch on @Int_Machines’ Nova-C lander, Athena. Watch dwell protection of our second lunar mission with Intuitive Machines right here on X. https://t.co/57Ug6tHsGd pic.twitter.com/MfsBQkh7Xn
— NASA (@NASA) February 21, 2025
Athena is carrying NASA devices together with a drill and mass spectrometer, which will likely be used to try “one of many first on-site demonstrations of useful resource use on the moon,” in keeping with the area company. These instruments will measure volatiles within the soil on the touchdown website within the lunar South Pole. The mission additionally provides Intuitive Machines one other probability at touchdown its spacecraft with all six ft on the bottom. Odysseus, although profitable in touching down on the floor, toppled over and ended up mendacity on its aspect.
This text initially appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/science/area/intuitive-machines-is-expected-to-launch-its-second-lunar-lander-this-week-174703197.html?src=rss