The first private lander landed on the Moon.
It's Odysseus, from the Texan company Intuitive Machine.
It is an absolute first in the history of the space age and also marks the return of an American vehicle to the Moon 52 years after the last mission of the Apollo program.
Launched on February 15th, Odysseus entered lunar orbit on February 21st, after traveling one million kilometres.
The lengthening maneuver took place as expected, but there were moments of tension because initially it was not possible to receive the signal.
After a few attempts with multiple Earth antennas, the 'beep' finally came from the lander.
It was a weak signal, the one that arrived on Earth from Odysseus' main antenna, but enough to make people breathe a sigh of relief and trigger increasingly louder and more convinced applause.
“We can confirm without a doubt that our vehicle is on the surface of the Moon and that we are transmitting,” Flight Director Tim Crain said as soon as the signal was received.
We are now awaiting updates on the conditions of the lander.
The Im-1 mission thus achieved its objective, crucial for the future of lunar programs and for the Lunar SpaceEconomy.
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