US Company Successfully Lands Spacecraft on Moon, First Private Mission to Land Upright

Firefly Aerospace made history yesterday with the landing of its Blue Ghost spacecraft on the Moon. It is the second private lunar mission to successfully land on the Moon, and the first one to have landed upright. Blue Ghost touched down close to Mons Latreille, one of the volcanically active areas on the Moon’s surface, at 3:34 am US Eastern Time.

The mission was one of NASA’s efforts to team up with private industry to reduce the cost of space exploration and support the Artemis program, which aims to return astronauts to the Moon. Blue Ghost, which launched in January, carries 10 scientific instruments and will operate for a full lunar day. The spacecraft is expected to capture dramatic images of a lunar eclipse and sunset in March.

This success follows the first private lunar landing by Intuitive Machines in February 2024, though that mission ended abruptly when the lander flipped over. Intuitive Machines will send a second mission, Athena, on March 6.

The increasing involvement of private companies in lunar missions, under NASA’s $2.6 billion CLPS program, marks a new thrilling chapter in space exploration.