Lunar First: Private Company Successfully Puts Lander on Moon

Firefly Aerospace has become the first private company to successfully land a spacecraft upright on the moon, after its Blue Ghost lander touched down on the lunar surface on March 2. 

According to the Associated Press, the touchdown on the moon’s northeastern slopes was confirmed by Firefly’s mission control facility, situated outside Austin, Texas. The Blue Ghost — which launched from Florida in mid-January — was reportedly carrying a drill and a vacuum among other equipment for NASA, which paid Firefly a combined $145 million between the delivery and the science and technology on board. 

While other private companies based in Russia, the U.S., China, India and Japan have managed to put landers on the moon in the past, none have been able to do so without the spacecraft either crashing or falling over in the process. On March 6, Houston-based Intuitive Machines confirmed that its Athena lunar lander, carrying an ice drill, a drone and two rovers for NASA had also touched down on the moon, but flight controllers could not confirm its condition. A year before that, a separate spacecraft sent to the moon by Intuitive Machines tipped over onto its side shortly after landing. 

The landers are part of a larger initiative spearheaded by NASA in preparation for its Artemis program, with a goal to eventually land astronauts on the moon for the first time since 1972.