Comments on: Next up, Athena lunar lander March 6 https://www.habitablezone.com/2025/03/03/next-up-athena-lunar-lander-march-6/ Tue, 12 May 2026 20:11:45 -0700 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: BuckGalaxy https://www.habitablezone.com/2025/03/03/next-up-athena-lunar-lander-march-6/#comment-53960 BuckGalaxy Fri, 07 Mar 2025 19:51:11 +0000 https://www.habitablezone.com/?p=105835#comment-53960 Athena landed in a small crater and tipped over on its side. The mission has officially ended without the payload ever being deployed. I was particularly excited about the hopper payload that was to explore inside the permanently shaded Mouton crater for ice. That's two attempts for IM, and two landers tipped over on their sides. Time for a redesign on the lander? A wider base and maybe some way to reorient itself if it tips over? It's been a bad week for space in general. Along with this failure, private asteroid mining startup company AstroForge has lost its Odin spacecraft that was headed for near earth asteroid 2022 OB5, and SpaceX's Starship Flight 8 lost it's upper stage for the second time in a row shortly after liftoff. Athena landed in a small crater and tipped over on its side. The mission has officially ended without the payload ever being deployed. I was particularly excited about the hopper payload that was to explore inside the permanently shaded Mouton crater for ice.

That’s two attempts for IM, and two landers tipped over on their sides. Time for a redesign on the lander? A wider base and maybe some way to reorient itself if it tips over?

It’s been a bad week for space in general. Along with this failure, private asteroid mining startup company AstroForge has lost its Odin spacecraft that was headed for near earth asteroid 2022 OB5, and SpaceX’s Starship Flight 8 lost it’s upper stage for the second time in a row shortly after liftoff.

]]> By: BuckGalaxy https://www.habitablezone.com/2025/03/03/next-up-athena-lunar-lander-march-6/#comment-53958 BuckGalaxy Thu, 06 Mar 2025 20:45:51 +0000 https://www.habitablezone.com/?p=105835#comment-53958 Athena is on the moon but may have not landed upright. This was the same problem with the first Intuitive Machines lander. IM is still working to figure out the orientation of the lander. Athena is on the moon but may have not landed upright. This was the same problem with the first Intuitive Machines lander. IM is still working to figure out the orientation of the lander.

]]> By: BuckGalaxy https://www.habitablezone.com/2025/03/03/next-up-athena-lunar-lander-march-6/#comment-53957 BuckGalaxy Thu, 06 Mar 2025 02:56:36 +0000 https://www.habitablezone.com/?p=105835#comment-53957 A livestream of the IM-2 landing will be carried on the Space.com homepage, NASA's NASA+ streaming service and on the Intuitive Machines YouTube channel. A livestream of the IM-2 landing will be carried on the Space.com homepage, NASA’s NASA+ streaming service and on the Intuitive Machines YouTube channel.

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