Erste private Mondmission in Cape Canaveral gestartet
Published: Monday, Jan 8th 2024, 10:00
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The first private US mission to the moon has been launched. The rocket lifted off from Cape Canaveral on Monday morning as planned and is scheduled to land on the Earth's satellite at the end of February. It would be the first - unmanned - US moon landing since the Apollo mission over 50 years ago. The University of Bern also wants to go to the moon in 2027.
The rocket is of the "Vulcan Centaur" type from the manufacturer ULA with the "Peregrine" lander. The capsule from the Pittsburgh-based company Astrobiotic is to land in an area known as Sinus Viscositatis (Bay of Sticky Grit).
With "Peregrine Mission 1", private individuals were able to buy space to transport material to the moon. The lander is 1.9 meters high and has a diameter of 2.5 meters.
In April 2023, a Japanese company failed a similar mission, with the company Ispace citing an incorrect altitude calculation of the lander during the landing attempt as the reason.
Private companies want to go to the moon
If successful, it would have been the world's first private moon landing, and now comes the second such attempt by a company. Private companies, including billionaire Elon Musk's SpaceX, have also wanted to land on the moon and manage other space projects for years.
As with the ISS space station, the US space agency NASA is also working ever more closely with commercial providers on lunar projects, as this has proven to be an efficient and ultimately cost-saving approach. Conversely, the business model of private companies has so far often depended on government clients.
Preparation for new Nasa mission
Nasa wants to prepare its own expeditions to the moon with several devices on the journey. Among other things, it wants to investigate the lunar exosphere during the mission. In addition, thermal properties and the hydrogen content of the material on the lunar surface (regolith) are to be investigated.
As part of the "Artemis" program, NASA currently plans to orbit the moon with three men and one woman on the ten-day "Artemis 2" mission at the end of 2024. In 2025, astronauts will then land on the moon again after more than half a century on "Artemis 3" - at least according to the current plan - including a woman and a non-white person for the first time. The long-term goal of "Artemis" is to establish a permanent lunar base as a foundation for missions to Mars.
Complaint from indigenous people
In addition to the "Peregrin" mission, NASA is planning further collaborations as part of its CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative to bring material to the moon. This involves awarding a type of delivery contract to a company such as Astrobotic. According to the company, "Peregrine" has supplies from governments, companies, universities and NASA from seven different countries on board.
A cargo from private partners in "Peregrine" is a thorn in the side of at least some indigenous people in the USA: human and animal ashes - as a special final resting place - are also to reach the moon as a result of the mission. According to US media reports, the president of the Navajo Nation in the state of Arizona, Buu Nygren, has therefore written a letter of complaint to NASA: The mission desecrates the moon, which is considered sacred in their culture, it said.
The University of Bern also wants to go to the moon
The University of Bern also wants to take an instrument to the moon in 2027 with a so-called "Commercial Lunar Payload Service". A highly sensitive Bernese laser is to be used for the chemical analysis of moon rocks.
According to the University of Bern, the instrument called "Lims" (Laser Ablation Ionization Mass Spectrometer) will land in the southern polar region of the moon. According to the researchers, this region is particularly interesting because certain elements occur there whose isotopes make it possible to determine the age of the material.
©Keystone/SDA
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