Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost lunar lander has captured a spectacular image of a sunrise from the Moon’s surface.
The stunning photograph was beamed back to Earth on Monday, just days after the spacecraft made its historic touchdown.
“Rise and shine! Firefly’s Blue Ghost lander captured its first sunrise on the Moon, marking the beginning of the lunar day and the start of surface operations in its new home,” the Texas-based startup announced.
The pioneering lunar lander made history on Sunday by becoming the first private spacecraft to touch down on the Moon without crashing or falling over.
Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost lunar lander has captured a spectacular image of a sunrise from the Moon’s surface
FIREFLY AEROSPACE
This achievement marks a significant leap for commercial lunar exploration.
The decade-old startup has accomplished a feat previously achieved by only a handful of countries: Russia, the US, China, India and Japan.
Before capturing the sunrise, Blue Ghost had already sent images of Earth from space and of the lunar surface after landing.
The lander has carried several scientific instruments to the Moon, including a drill and vacuum for NASA to further understand the lunar environment.
The vacuum equipment is designed to suck up Moon dirt for analysis, while the drill will measure temperature approximately 3 metres below the lunar surface.
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Blue Ghost has accomplished a feat previously achieved by only a handful of countries: Russia, the US, China, India and Japan
FIREFLY AEROSPACE
Another device on board aims to eliminate abrasive lunar dust, which in previous missions was found to cake over surfaces, including on Nasa’s Apollo Moonwalkers.
The lander has begun operating “many” of its 10 payloads since capturing the sunrise image.
Firefly Aerospace confirmed the spacecraft “will continue operations over the next two weeks” on the lunar surface.
During this period, Blue Ghost will witness a lunar eclipse from the Moon’s perspective and a lunar sunset before its mission concludes, according to Nasa.
Unlike Nasa’s Apollo Moon landings with their billions in funding, private companies operate with limited resources.
“Every time we go up, we’re learning from each other,” said Firefly chief Jason Kim.
Nasa’s associate administrator for science missions called the sunrise image a ‘reminder’ of what’s ahead in space exploration
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This commercial approach represents a new chapter in lunar exploration.
Despite the financial constraints, Blue Ghost has achieved what only government space agencies had previously accomplished.
Dr Nicola Fox, Nasa’s associate administrator for science missions, called the sunrise image a “reminder” of what’s ahead in space exploration.
“What an absolutely breathtaking reminder of the mind-blowing imagery, groundbreaking science, and incredible discoveries ahead in this new era of space exploration!” she said.
Nasa added on social media: “Blue Ghost lander witnessed lunar sunrise – the start of a new day on the Moon and two weeks of activities.”