In a disappointing turn of events, the private lunar lander Athena, built by Texas-based Intuitive Machines, was declared dead after landing sideways in a crater near the moon’s south pole. The mission, part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program, was intended to gather crucial data for future lunar exploration. However, Athena’s solar panels were unable to receive sufficient sunlight due to its final position, leaving it powerless and unable to continue operations.
“With the direction of the sun, the orientation of the solar panels, and extreme cold temperatures in the crater, Intuitive Machines does not expect Athena to recharge,” the company stated in an official press release. “The mission has concluded, and teams are continuing to assess the data collected throughout the mission.”
Who Was Behind the Mission?
Intuitive Machines, a private aerospace company based in Houston, led the mission with financial backing from NASA, which awarded the company $62.5 million to deliver scientific payloads to the lunar surface. The mission was part of a broader effort to advance commercial lunar exploration, with NASA dedicating $2.6 billion in CLPS contracts through 2028. The goal was to enable private companies to develop cost-effective technologies for space exploration, helping pave the way for future crewed missions to the moon and beyond.
NASA’s involvement in CLPS reflects a shift in its approach to lunar exploration, prioritizing partnerships with private firms to achieve more frequent and lower-cost missions. Chris Culbert, CLPS Project Office Manager, explained this approach, stating, “If we’re flying missions at one-tenth of the cost of a NASA mission, and we fail two of them, we still get eight missions for that same price. Even with one or two or three failures, this is still a very economical proposition.”
Why Did Athena Land This Way?
Athena’s failure to land upright echoes the fate of its predecessor, Odysseus, which also ended up on its side during Intuitive Machines’ first lunar landing attempt in 2024. In this latest mission, Athena missed its intended landing site by over 800 feet and fell into a crater, where its solar panels were misaligned with the sun’s position. The harsh temperatures and difficult terrain of the lunar south pole added further challenges, preventing the lander from being recharged or restored to operational status.
A key issue in both missions was a last-minute problem with the lander’s laser navigation system, which plays a critical role in ensuring a precise touchdown. NASA confirmed that Athena touched down on the moon at approximately 12:30 p.m. ET on March 6, but uncertainty remained regarding its exact orientation. Later, an image taken by Athena confirmed that it was lying on its side. Despite this, mission controllers were able to maintain contact with the lander for a brief period and collect data before it lost power.
The lander’s failure highlights the difficulty of operating in the moon’s south polar region, an area of particular interest due to its potential ice deposits. “Our targeted landing site near the lunar South Pole is one of the most scientifically interesting, and geographically challenging locations, on the Moon,” said Nicky Fox, associate administrator for science at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “Each success and setback are opportunities to learn and grow, and we will use this lesson to propel our efforts to advance science, exploration, and commercial development as we get ready for human exploration of Mars.”
The Impact on Lunar Exploration
Despite Athena’s premature shutdown, the mission did achieve some scientific milestones. Before losing power, the lander successfully transmitted 250 megabytes of data to NASA. This included preliminary findings from its drill and spectrometer, which were designed to analyze the lunar soil for traces of frozen water. However, NASA noted that some of the detected elements were likely contaminants from Athena’s own propulsion system.
The mission also sought to deploy a small rover, a rocket-powered drone, and a 4G LTE cellular network on the lunar surface. Unfortunately, none of these objectives were fully realized due to the lander’s compromised position. A four-wheeled rover built by Lunar Outpost, which was intended to explore the moon’s surface, never made it off Athena’s fallen chassis, though data suggests it survived the landing and could have functioned under different circumstances. “The bigger, four-wheeled rover never made it off the fallen lander, but data beamed back indicates it survived and could have driven away had everything gone well,” said a statement from Lunar Outpost.
NASA officials remain optimistic about the CLPS program, emphasizing that setbacks are an expected part of developing new technologies. “While this mission didn’t achieve all of its objectives for NASA, the work that went into the payload development is already informing other agency and commercial efforts,” said Clayton Turner, associate administrator for space technology at NASA Headquarters. “As we continue developing new technologies to support exploration of the Moon and Mars, testing technologies in-situ is crucial to informing future missions. The CLPS initiative remains an instrumental method for achieving this.”
Who Else Was Affected?
Athena’s failure was not the only major lunar development this week. Another private U.S. company, Firefly Aerospace, successfully landed its Blue Ghost lander in the moon’s northern latitudes just days before Athena’s ill-fated touchdown. Firefly’s mission, also funded by NASA, has so far met most of its objectives, successfully transmitting images and data from the lunar surface. Firefly CEO Jason Kim confirmed that eight of the ten NASA experiments on Blue Ghost had already met their mission objectives and that operations were expected to continue until lunar nightfall.
Additionally, SpaceX attempted to launch its Starship rocket on the same day Athena landed, but the test flight ended in failure when the spacecraft lost contact and exploded over Florida.
Despite these challenges, NASA and its private partners remain committed to lunar exploration. NASA’s Artemis program, which aims to establish a sustainable human presence on the moon before eventually venturing to Mars, is still on track, with its first crewed lunar landing planned for 2027.
For Intuitive Machines, the focus now shifts to learning from Athena’s failure and improving its upcoming missions. The company is contracted for two more CLPS lunar deliveries in 2026 and 2027. While Athena’s landing didn’t go as planned, each mission provides valuable insights that will shape the future of commercial spaceflight.
With billions of dollars invested and scientific discoveries at stake, the race to conquer the moon continues—setbacks and all.
