Moon mission ‘anomaly’ puts flight on hold
A private Moon mission that blasted into space yesterday is in jeopardy as a problem with the propulsion system is causing a “critical loss of propellant”.
The Peregrine Mission One (PM1), built by US space company Astrobotic and carrying a piece of technology developed by UK scientists, would be the first private probe to land on the lunar surface.
However, hours after its launch Astrobotic reported that an anomaly had occurred which prevented the lander from achieving a stable position pointing towards the Sun. Now the company has said teams are assessing “alternative mission profiles” because of the issue.
The company said the problem could prevent the spacecraft from making a soft landing on the Moon.
In a statement on X, the company said: “Unfortunately, it appears the failure within the propulsion system is causing a critical loss of propellant. The team is working to try and stabilise this loss but, given the situation, we have prioritised maximising the science and data we can capture. We are currently assessing what alternative mission profiles may be feasible at this time.”
In a previous update, Astrobotic said that as efforts to resolve the issue continued, the spacecraft’s battery levels were dropping.
The company said: “The team believes that the likely cause of the unstable sunpointing is a propulsion anomaly that, if proven true, threatens the ability of the
spacecraft to soft land on the Moon.”
Shortly after issuing the second update, the company announced that following a short expected communication blackout, it had made contact with Peregrine, and that an “improvised manoeuvre” was successful in reorienting its solar array towards the Sun.
Astrobotics said on X: “We have successfully re-established communications with
Peregrine after the known communication blackout.
“The team’s improvised manoeuvre was successful in reorienting Peregrine’s solar array towards the Sun. We are now charging the battery.
“The Mission Anomaly Board continues to evaluate the data we’re receiving and is assessing the status of what we believe to be the root of the anomaly: a failure within the propulsion system.”
It added that the team was “grateful for the outpouring of support” it had received on social media, and through to phone calls and helping hands, and offered “a heartfelt thank you from the entire Peregrine Mission One team”.
If successful, Peregrine, which is carrying an instrument known as the Peregrine Ion Trap Mass Spectrometer, which was developed in the UK, could become the first
commercial lander, and first American lander in more than 50 years, to reach the Moon. An attempted landing was scheduled for February 23.
Peregrine is carrying a total of 20 payloads from seven countries and 16 commercial customers. They include the first lunar surface payloads from the Mexican and German space agencies, and the first lunar payloads from the UK, Hungary and Seychelles.
We have successfully re-established communications