Posted on 02/23/2024 6:12:35 AM PST by Salman
For the first time since the Apollo era, an American spaceship has landed on the Moon: an uncrewed commercial robot, funded by NASA to pave the way for US astronauts to return to Earth's cosmic neighbor later this decade.
Odysseus, built by Houston-based Intuitive Machines, touched down near the lunar south pole Thursday at 2323 GMT, after a nail-biting final descent where flight controllers had to switch to an experimental landing system and took several minutes to establish radio contact with the lander after it came to rest.
"Today for the first time in more than a half century, the US has returned to the Moon," NASA administrator Bill Nelson said in a video. "Today for the first time in the history of humanity, a commercial company, an American company, launched and led the voyage up there."
Images from an external "EagleCam" designed to shoot out from the spacecraft during its final seconds of descent could be released early Friday, a member of the team that built it told AFP.
(Excerpt) Read more at spacedaily.com ...
It only took 50+ years.
‘Murica!
Good proof of concept. Now supplies and equipment can be delivered to the lunar surface with unmanned, robot vehicles on low energy orbits. The start of lunar occupation is upon us. Prediction, in ten to 15 years there will be a base with a staff of 6-10 scientists living on the moon for a few weeks at a time conducting experiments and prospecting for minerals, ores and water.
We needed this like a hole in the head. Toys, nothing but a very expensive big boy toy we can’t afford. There are much more important priorities.
Probably Chinese, possibly also Indian. Any Americans will be there by permission.
Whitey’s back on the Moon!
“Rather the government spend money on this or reparations for crack heads?”
Neither... We need to stop spending in unproductive directions so our Grandchildren do not have to pay for either of these. Why do we “HAVE TO” spend money? Why can’t we pay back towards our debt as a #1 priority instead of blowing it on unneeded toys?
I think this is LONG overdue.
About darned time.
“About darned time.”
Why?
The time to provide the possibility of alternate food soures and factory locations is not after we need them. We are rapidly starving to death and our housing needs are covering up a lot of possible agricultural land and reverting water and natural growth to a point where we are closing in on dietary solvency.
Yes we have other problems. But if we try to ignore our future for the present, we lose, period. Maybe not immediately, but definately in the future.
And when you consider the trip was ramrodded by industry and not government, it becomes an investment. One that was not coming from funds to repair some of our other current problems. And we can sure use the help.
wy69
It ain’t my debt. They will never “pay down debt”.
Apparently the Odysseus lander is just a 13 foot tall weather station?
Space travel will continue to be nothing more than a scientific curiosity mission until we find a way to make money from it. So, it’s a good 100 years away from that
Strip mining asteroids would be a good option, but only if we live there too, not lugging stuff back to earth
Belters unite!
I’d like to see the landing video before I accept that it landed successfully.
“It ain’t my debt.”
And that premise is exactly the problem. Who cares about our Grandkids right?
First AI transmission..
Where the hell is the lander, rover, and flag?????
“Apparently the Odysseus lander is just a 13 foot tall weather station?”
I didn’t even care to know so can’t say. The blatant irrationality and lack of logic turned me against the concept immediately.
But that sounds about right, it is always something we don’t really need. They will just use it to try and justify “Lunar Warming” because it is too close to the earth.
Then we will have to start spending money to “save the moon” too. The pattern is absolutely predictable.
So it’s good for 4 days only?
But, they show "simulations".
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