Moon – Spaceflight Now

ispace’s Resilience lander crash lands on the Moon

June 6, 2025 Will Robinson-Smith

This was the second consecutive failed landing for the Japan-based company. A preliminary analysis points to issues with the laser altimeter.

As it happened: ispace makes second attempt at historic Moon landing

June 5, 2025 Will Robinson-Smith

Mission 2, formally dubbed ‘SMBC x Hakuto-R Venture Moon,’ was a follow up to ispace’s 2023 failed landing attempt. Touchdown was anticipated on June 5 at 3:17 p.m. EDT / 1917 UTC (4:17 a.m. JST on June 6).

NASA unveils three teams to compete for crewed lunar rover demonstration mission

April 4, 2024 Will Robinson-Smith

NASA awarded the so-called ‘Lunar Terrain Vehicle Service’ contract and classified it as an “indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, milestone-based LTVS contract with firm-fixed-price task orders.” The agency said it “has a combined maximum potential value of $4.6 billion for all awards.”

Intuitive Machines’ ‘Odysseus’ becomes first commercial lander to reach the Moon

February 22, 2024 Will Robinson-Smith

The IM-1 mission marked the first non-governmental lander to safely reach the Moon in history. The Nova-C lander named Odysseus landed at about 6:23 p.m. EST (2323 UTC).

Intuitive Machines’ Moon lander Odysseus reaches lunar orbit

February 21, 2024 Will Robinson-Smith

The spacecraft launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on Feb. 15. It arrived in a 92 km circular orbit less than a week later.

SpaceX, Intuitive Machines launches robotic lander to the Moon

February 13, 2024 Will Robinson-Smith

Intuitive Machines and SpaceX stood down from the first launch opportunity for the Nova-C lander. The Falcon 9 rocket supporting the mission is set to lift off on Thursday, Feb. 15, at 1:05 a.m. EST.

Three robotic missions target Moon landings over one week in January

December 6, 2023 Will Robinson-Smith

In a blend of interesting circumstances and happenstance, two private companies and Japan’s space agency are all poised to land on the Moon in the back half of January 2024.

Astrobotic’s Peregrine lander arrives in Florida ahead of Christmas Eve Moon-bound launch

November 1, 2023 Will Robinson-Smith

The first payload teed up for NASA’s industry-led missions to the Moon has arrived in Florida. Astrobotic’s Peregrine lunar lander was unpacked inside a clean room on the Space Coast after leaving the company’s facilities in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on Friday.

Intuitive Machines targets launch to the Moon in mid-January

October 27, 2023 Will Robinson-Smith

The first lunar lander aiming for a touchdown at the Moon’s south pole has a new launch date. Intuitive Machines said Friday it is targeting the launch of its Nova-C lander on the IM-1 mission for no earlier than January 12, 2024.

Russia’s Luna 25 lander crashes on the Moon

August 20, 2023 Will Robinson-Smith

Russia’s first mission to the Moon for nearly 50 years ended in failure when the Luna 25 spacecraft crashed onto the surface, the Russian space agency Roscomos said Sunday.