Friday / 16 Feb 2024

Commercial USA IM-1 Lander Odysseus on Direct Course for Moon

Intuitive Machines of Houston TX working around the clock to achieve first USA Moon landing in 21st century and first commercial landing ever with Nova-C ‘Odie’ on Trans-Lunar Orbit (TLO); Odie is expected to archive Lunar Orbit Insertion (LOI) on 21 Feb, followed by landing site near the eastern rim of Malapert A crater (80.2°S, 1.0°E) 22 Feb; Carrying 6 NASA and 6 independent payloads under $118M NASA CLPS contract + undisclosed private freight charges, the IM-1 mission was inspired by Space Policy Directive-1 per CEO Steve Altemus; SPD-1 calls for public-private and international partnerships to ‘enable human expansion across the solar system’

Credits: SpaceX, Intuitive Machines, LinkedIn