Intuitive Machines is the first U.S. commercial company to successfully achieve an uncrewed lunar landing since Apollo’s 1972 mission.

On February 22 at 6:23 p.m. EST, Intuitive Machines’ first mission (IM-1) landed Odysseus “Odie” on the Moon as part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative for Artemis – the return of humans to the Moon.

Founded in 2013, the Houston-based company focuses on leading space exploration as an infrastructure company that creates cutting-edge solutions to solve some of humanity’s most formidable challenges.

In 2019, NASA tasked Intuitive Machines with its first mission to land a suite of payloads on the Moon. Over the next four years, Intuitive Machines built a space program at its spaceport facility in Houston, TX developing its first NOVA-C class lunar lander (Odysseus), mission control center and Lunar Telemetry and Tracking Network (LTN) to collect spacecraft data.

With Artemis in mind, NASA has partnered with other private commercial companies to successfully soft land a lunar lander to help lay the foundation of Artemis, though they did not originate from the U.S.

In 2019, a spacecraft built by Israel-based company SpaceIL crashed onto the Moon’s surface. And again in 2023, Japan-based company Ispace lost control of its lander as it careened toward the Moon’s surface.

A most recent U.S. attempt on January 8 by Pittsburgh-based company Astrobotic Technology failed to make its way to the Moon when its Peregrine lunar lander suffered a severe issue with its propulsion systems and fuel leakage.

The NOVA-C class lander produced by Intuitive Machines is a carbon composite structure with a honeycomb aluminum core, face sheets and linerless composite propellant tanks, making it as light as possible for flight. Odysseus carried six NASA payloads setting the foundation for Artemis. As of this press in time, Intuitive Machines shares the following update about Odysseus.

Lunar Surface Day One Update, Intuitive Machines:

“Odysseus is alive and well. Flight controllers are communicating and commanding the vehicle to download science data. The lander has good telemetry and solar charging. We continue to learn more about the vehicle’s specific information (Lat/Lon), overall health, and attitude (orientation).”

The company will host a LIVE press conference at 5 p.m. EST on Friday, Feb. 23 detailing Odysseus’ historic soft Moon landing.

For related articles please visit, Spotlight | Jose Ortiz: “If you can dream it, you can achieve it” (spacecenter.org) and Houston’s Commercial Aerospace Company Sends NOVA-C Lunar Lander to the Moon – Space Center Houston

To watch Intuitive Machines LIVE landing on NASA TV, please visit IM-1 | Intuitive Machines.

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Houston’s commercial aerospace company Intuitive Machines launched Odysseus “Odie” a Class C robotic lunar lander on February 15 for its first private mission under NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative.

NASA’s CLPS program is responsible for loading scientific instruments onto privately owned robotic moon landers like Odysseus. The primary goal of these landers is to collect crucial data that will aid in NASA’s Artemis program. The agency’s mission is to establish a habitable base near the lunar south pole that can be worked and lived in by a crew by the end of this decade.

Space Center Houston, the official visitors center of NASA’s Johnson Space Center, recently exhibited a replica of Intuitive Machines NOVA-C class lunar lander in its Main Plaza. The purpose of this exhibit was to inform visitors about the company’s upcoming private mission (IM-1) to the lunar surface. This mission will be the first of its kind in over 50 years to originate from the United States.

“Odie,” nicknamed by Intuitive Machines is scheduled to land near the south pole of the Moon on February 22. If the mission is successful, Intuitive Machines will become the first-ever U.S. commercial company to achieve a soft Moon landing.

Odysseus lifted atop a Space X Falcon 9 rocket from the Florida Kennedy Space Center 39A launchpad at 1:05 a.m. EST. According to Space X, this was the 18th launch and landing for this particular booster which is one short of the company’s reuse record. The same Space X Falcon 9 rocket can be seen at Space Center Houston which was used to resupply the International Space Station (ISS) twice in 2017.

Intuitive Machines has partnered with Columbia, an American sportswear brand to safeguard its NOVA-C lunar lander from extreme heat conditions and assess the limits of the brand’s innovations. The lander is being protected by an Omni-Heat jacket to shield it from the harsh conditions of space.

Odysseus is en route toward the lunar orbit (a six-day journey) to its landing site on Malapert A – a small crater about 190 miles from the Moon’s south pole. The commercial company confirms Odysseus is healthy and is communicating with the company’s Lunar Data Network (LDN) control center in Houston, TX.  

Please visit our News Center for more updates on Odysseus’ mission.

For related articles please visit, Spotlight | Jose Ortiz: “If you can dream it, you can achieve it” (spacecenter.org)

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The Conrad Challenge, a global youth innovation competition at Space Center Houston, heads to the moon on Astrobotic’s Peregrine Lunar Lander on Monday, Jan. 8, via a partnership with PHOOZY, maker of thermal protective cases for tech. 

A “MoonDrive” containing historical submissions from past Conrad Challenge participants is included in the Peregrine’s payload, among other cargo from NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services initiative and other customers.  

The Conrad Challenge honors the legacy of astronaut Pete Conrad, the commander of Apollo 12 and the third man to walk on the Moon. The Challenge invites a global community of students to combine education, innovation and entrepreneurship. The MoonDrive’s inclusion in the Peregrine’s payload marks a full-circle moment as it not only carries Conrad’s legacy but also lands near the Ocean of Storms – the same landing site where Apollo 12 landed more than 55 years ago. 

“Apollo 12 is the mission that took STEM to the Moon, and for eighteen years, the Conrad Challenge has been bringing STEM to a global community of students, inviting them to understand and participate in designing a sustainable future for humanity,” said Nancy Conrad, wife of Pete Conrad and Founder of the Conrad Foundation. 

“Pete saw Earth from the Moon as a blue marble in a black sky, without any borders or boundaries. Our students have collaborated without borders to develop solutions that will now return to the lunar surface where Pete walked. This is truly a “back to the future” moment for the Conrad Challenge.” 

Pete’s lunar mission, Apollo 12, marked a significant scientific milestone. It was the first mission to bring STEM to the Moon (through the Apollo Lunar Surface Exploration Package (ALSEP)). The legacy of Apollo has paved the way for the next generation of explorers and innovators. 

This launch marks an opportunity to invite the next generation, the Artemis Generation, to focus on peace, sustainability, scientific discovery and the economic benefits of exploration. 

Learn more about the content included in the Conrad Challenge MoonDrive.

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Image credits: SpaceX

About the program

NASA’s Commercial Crew Program is working with industry through a public-private partnership to provide safe, reliable, and cost-effective transportation to and from the ISS, which will allow for additional research time and will increase the opportunity for discovery aboard humanity’s testbed for exploration. The space station remains the springboard to space exploration, including future missions to the Moon and Mars.

Find SpaceX Crew-4 mission updates here.

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It’s launch day for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) GOES-T, a satellite that will help scientists monitor Earth and space weather.

At a glance

• Launch time: 3:38 p.m. CST (Watch on NASA TV)
• Launch site: Cape Canaveral Space Force Station
• Launch vehicle: United Alliance Atlas V rocket

What is GOES?

GOES stands for Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites (GOES), and GOES-T is the latest satellite in NOAA’s GOES-R Series. This series of satellites forms the most advanced environmental monitoring system in the Western Hemisphere.

Upon reaching geostationary orbit, GOES-T’s name will be changed to GOES-18. This satellite will replace GOES-17 (which currently serves as GOES West) and work with GOES-16 (which serves as GOES-East) to keep watch over half the globe!

GOES-17 will remain a spare in space.

What will GOES-T do?

GOES-T is NOAA’s new and improved satellite. It boasts of upgraded instruments and a simpler hardware design.

Once it has reached geostationary orbit, GOES-18 will do an instrument check. If everything is properly functioning, GOES-18 will begin monitoring the western contiguous United States. GOES-18 will also monitor, “Alaska, Hawaii, Mexico, Central America, and the Pacific Ocean.”

It will serve as a watchful eye up above, alerting scientists and environmental monitoring personnel below to potential hazards on Earth and in space. It will also collect real-time data to help predict weather events that may pose a threat to all of us here on Earth, like dense fog or hurricanes, and monitor dangerous natural disasters like wildfires and volcanic eruptions.

GOES-18 will also monitor space weather for potential hazards that could cause damage to spacecraft or disrupt communications and navigational technology.

Key Capabilities

NOAA’s GOES-R series satellites are helping scientists learn more about Earth and space weather. These satellite’s real-time capabilities help forecasters predict hazardous weather events and monitor natural disasters as they happen, which can help keep emergency response crews safe, and save countless other lives.

GOES-T key capabilities include:

• Fog detection
• Wildfire monitoring
• Tracking sea surface temperatures
• Monitoring for space weather hazards
• Hurricane tracking
• Air quality alerts

For a complete list of the things GOES-T will do, click here.

Learn how GOES-T will help detect and monitor wildfires with this NOAASatellites clip below:

Find more information on GOES-T here.

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In a historic first-of-its-kind flight, Axiom Mission 1 (Ax-1) will launch four private astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS). Meet the crew and get the scoop on this groundbreaking mission in today’s Launch Pad post.

At a glance

• Tentative launch date: April 8, 2022
• Launch site: NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, Cape Canaveral, Florida
• Launch vehicle: SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket
• Destination: The International Space Station (ISS)
• Mission duration: 8 days

Meet the all-civilian crew of Ax-1

• Michael López-Alegría is the commander for Ax-1. He is a former NASA astronaut (STS-73, STS-92, STS-113, and Expedition 14) and naval aviator currently serving as Axiom Space’s Vice President of Business Development.
• Larry Connor is the pilot for Ax-1. He is a winning race car driver, a skilled private pilot, successful entrepreneur, philanthropist, and investor.
• Mark Pathy is a mission specialist for Ax-1. He is a philanthropist, and the CEO and chairman of MAVRIK CORP., an investment firm based out of Montreal.
• Eytan Stibbe is a mission specialist for Ax-1. He is a philanthropist and impact investor, who is a founding partner of the Vital Capital Fund.

About the mission

They’re an all-civilian crew and they’re headed into space for the first private astronaut mission to the ISS!

The Ax-1 crew will lift off aboard SpaceX’s Crew Dragon capsule atop its Falcon 9 rocket. Axiom will purchase supplies and resources from NASA for the crew’s stay onboard the station. Both Axiom and NASA will coordinate the Ax-1 crew’s activities with ISS crew members currently living and working on station.

Once onboard the ISS, López-Alegría, Connor, Pathy, and Stibbe will devote their time to conducting a wide array of scientific experiments, philanthropic work, and research for a diverse group of organizations from around the globe. According to Axiom, collaborators include the Mayo Clinic, Montreal Children’s Hospital, the Ramon Foundation, the Canadian Space Agency, the Israel Space Agency, and many more.

The Ax-1 mission will also bring back important science samples (which must be kept cold) from the station for NASA.

Ax-1 mission patch. Image credit: Axiom Space

All of Axiom’s private astronauts have undergone rigorous training to be a part of the Ax-1 mission, and just last month NASA and its international partners approved the crew for flight.

The successful launch of the first private ISS mission will mark a significant milestone in the history of human space exploration. Access to space is expanding. More people will soon be able to travel to low Earth orbit (LEO), more researchers will be able to conduct their scientific experiments off the planet, and more private companies will compete to develop the latest and greatest tech of tomorrow.

Private astronaut flights like Ax-1 are all a part of the agency’s plan to foster a LEO marketplace where private companies can take the lead. Ultimately, this will make future NASA missions more economical.

In fact, Axiom is developing the world’s first private space station, set to begin launching in 2024. Until then, Axiom’s private astronaut missions are taking one small step toward humanity’s next giant leap in human space exploration.

Find more information on the upcoming Ax-1 mission here, and don’t forget to attend our Ax-1 Launch Watch Party in Space Center Houston’s center plaza on April 8! Estimated launch time is 11:05 a.m. Date and time subject to change. This event is included in general admission.

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Retired NASA astronaut Michael “Rich” Clifford died recently due to complications from Parkinson’s Disease. He was 69.

Clifford went to space three times in his NASA career, spending 27 days and more than 665 hours in orbit. He also was the first NASA astronaut to make a spacewalk while docked to a space station.

NASA career

Clifford was selected as an astronaut in 1990, after graduating from the United States Military Academy and Georgia Tech. He was also a Master Army Aviator who had more than 3,400 flight hours before his selection. Clifford flew into space as part of three space shuttle missions, STS-53 in 1992, STS-59 in 1994, and STS-76 in 1996.

After returning home from STS-59, Clifford was diagnosed with young-onset Parkinson’s Disease. Despite this diagnosis, he was assigned to the crew of STS-76 and flew back into space in 1996. In fact, that’s where he made history.

During that third mission, the Space Shuttle Atlantis docked with the Russian space station Mir. Clifford then performed a six-hour spacewalk to install experiment packages on Mir. It was the first time an American astronaut had performed an EVA (extra-vehicular activity) while docked to an orbiting space station.

Clifford left NASA in January 1997 to accept the position of Space Station Flight Operations Manager for Boeing Defense and Space Group. He was also a recipient of the Defense Superior Service Medal, the Legion of Merit, the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, the National Intelligence Medal of Achievement, NASA Space Flight Medal, and the Army Commendation Medal.

Part of Independence Plaza

Clifford has a small tie to the history on display at Space Center Houston. The STS-49 mission in 1992 was designed to salvage the crippled Intelsat VI satellite and place it into its planned orbit. To do this, STS-49 crewmembers Rick Hieb, Thomas Akers, and Pierre Thuot had to execute the first three-person spacewalk to capture the satellite.

Clifford played a small but significant part in making that record-breaking spacewalk possible. During the mission, at the Johnson Space Center’s underwater EVA training facility, Rich and two other astronauts put on EVA suits and together squeezed into the submerged airlock mockup to verify that a three-person spacewalk was possible.

A piece of flown hardware from the successful STS-49 mission is on view in our Independence Plaza exhibit. Inside shuttle replica Independence’s payload bay in the Plaza is nestled the STS-49 cradle that carried the booster motor for use in the Intelsat VI rescue.

[envira-gallery id=”52240″]

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Learn more about the Artemis I CubeSats here.

More to explore

• They’re going to the Moon! Artemis Astronauts Announced
• Artemis I: Mission Overview
• Artemis I: Dive into Artemis Training
• Artemis I: About Orion
• Artemis I: How does Artemis compare to Apollo?
• Artemis I: About the SLS

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In a career that spanned five decades, George Abbey shaped NASA Johnson Space Center as much as anyone before or since. So it’s fitting that a building there now bears his name.

Earlier this month, JSC renamed Rocket Park after its former director, George Abbey. The building that houses the same Saturn V rocket that carried astronauts to the Moon as part of the Apollo Program will be named after a man who began his NASA career during the Apollo Program.

Abbey joined NASA in 1964 from the Air Force. He had spent 4,000 hours in aircraft before moving to work with the new space agency.

He immediately went to work on the Apollo Program. In 1973, he received the Medal of Freedom from President Richard Nixon for his work on the Apollo 13 mission.

“He touched so many different people by helping with their careers,” said Vanessa Wyche, director of JSC, said at the dedication of Rocket Park earlier this month. “But mostly people are coming to honor his legacy and his role in the success of human exploration. He is a legend at NASA.”

JSC Leadership

Abbey quickly moved up into JSC leadership. He was named director of flight operations in 1976, director of the Flight Crew Operations Directorate in 1983. He was named Director of JSC in 1996 and held that post until 2001.

In his flight operations role, Abbey decided who flew into space for much of the space shuttle era. He also was a staunch champion of the International Space Station, making sure to keep Russia as an ally of the program and working to send NASA astronauts to the Mir Space Station.

“George Abbey personally saved the space station,” said Apollo astronaut and longtime NASA advisor Tom Stafford in an article for Space.com. Stafford credits Abbey with bringing Apollo-style management practices to the station project. “If he’d gotten run over by a truck in 1995, we still wouldn’t have anything up there.”

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Nichole Ayers

Age: 32
From: Colorado
About: This Air Force major holds a degree in mathematics from the U.S. Air Force Academy and an advanced degree in computational and applied mathematics from Rice University. She has logged over 1,150 flight hours in the F-22 Raptor and T-38 jets. Ayers also headed the first-ever all-female F-22 formation in combat two years ago. Read her full NASA bio here.

Marcos Berrios

Age: 37
From: Guaynabo, Puerto Rico
About: Berrios is a major in the U.S. Air Force who holds degrees in mechanical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Stanford University, where he also obtained a doctorate in aeronautics and astronautics. He is a distinguished aviator and test pilot, having logged 1,300 hours of flight time.
Read his full NASA bio here.

Christina Birch

Age: 35
From: Arizona
About: Birch holds degrees in mathematics and biochemistry and molecular biophysics from the University of Arizona, and obtained her doctorate in biological engineering from MIT. Birch has taught at the University of California and the California Institute of Technology. She is also a pro cyclist on the U.S. National Team.
Read her full NASA bio here.

Deniz Burnham

Age: 36
From: Alaska
About: Burnham is U.S. Navy lieutenant who holds a degree in chemical engineering from the University of California and an advanced degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Southern California. Burnham is a former NASA intern currently serving in the Navy Reserves with leading industry experience in the energy sector. She has managed drilling projects in Alaska, Canada, and Texas. Read her full NASA bio here.

Luke Delaney

Age: 42
From: Florida
About: Delaney, a retired U.S. Marine Corps. major, earned his undergraduate degree in mechanical engineering from University of North Florida, and his advanced degree in aerospace engineering from the Naval Postgraduate School. Delaney is a distinguished naval aviator and test pilot with over 3,700 flight hours logged, including his time as a research pilot at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Virginia. Read his full NASA bio here.

Andre Douglas

Age: 35
From: Virginia
About: Douglas served in the U.S. Coast Guard and holds a degree in mechanical engineering from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, as well as advanced degrees in mechanical engineering and naval architecture and marine engineering from the University of Michigan. He also earned an advanced degree in electrical and computer engineering from John Hopkins University and obtained his doctorate in systems engineering from the George Washington University. Douglas was working at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Lab upon his selection. Read his full NASA bio here.

Jack Hathaway

Age: 39
From: Connecticut
About: Hathaway is a U.S. Navy commander and distinguished naval aviator who has logged more than 2,500 flight hours in 30 types of aircraft. He holds a degree in physics and history from the U.S. Naval Academy, and completed his graduate studies at the Cranfield University in England and the U.S. Naval War College.
Read his full NASA bio here.

Anil Menon

Age: 45
From: Minnesota
About: Menon, a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Air Force, holds a degree in Neurobiology from Harvard University and an advanced degree in mechanical engineering from Stanford University. He earned his Doctor of Medicine degree from Stanford Medical School and another advanced degree in Public Health from the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston. He has worked with both SpaceX and NASA as a flight surgeon for human spaceflight missions to the International Space Station. Read his full NASA bio here.

Christopher Williams

Age: 38
From: Maryland
About: Williams holds a degree in physics from Stanford University and earned his doctorate in physics from MIT. He is a board-certified medical physicist, who at the time of his selection was working as an assistant professor at Harvard Medical School.
Read his full NASA bio here.

Jessica Wittner

Age: 38
From: California
About: Wittner is a lieutenant commander in the U.S. Navy and holds a degree in aerospace engineering from the University of Arizona, and an advanced degree in aerospace engineering from the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School. She is a graduate of the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School and has served as a distinguished aviator and test pilot who has flown F/A-18 Hornet aircraft.
Read her full NASA bio here.

See the full announcement and learn more about the 2021 NASA astronaut class here.

Watch the video of the ceremony at NASA Johnson Space Center below:

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