Astrobotic's Peregrine lunar lander to launch on January 8
Astrobotic's Peregrine lunar lander is set to lift off on January 8. The Pittsburgh-based company plans to land the nearly 6.5-foot tall spacecraft on the Moon's surface on February 23. If all goes well, this will be the first American spacecraft to land on the Moon after the Apollo program. Initially, the mission was scheduled for December 24. Astrobotic and United Launch Alliance (ULA) delayed the launch to finish a wet dress rehearsal, which was completed on December 14.
The mission will operate for about 8 days
Peregrine will transport 20 payloads for government and commercial clients, including five from NASA's Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program. The lander can carry up to 90kg and will operate for about 192 hours (or eight days) after landing on the Moon. During this time, it will supply power and communications to the payloads. Astrobotic charges around $1.2 million per kilogram of mass delivered to the lunar surface.
Launch preparations
Astrobotic confirmed that Peregrine has finished the final checkouts and fueling. It was integrated with ULA's Vulcan Centaur rocket last month. The mission will take off from Cape Canaveral in Florida on January 8. It will then perform a series of burns to position itself for the lunar landing in February. Instead of heading directly to the lunar surface, the spacecraft will enter lunar orbit, and then reduce the apolune, or high point in lunar orbit, from 9,000km to 100km.
CLPS program and competitors
Astrobotic is carrying out the mission under a $79.5 million contract from NASA's CLPS program. The company also secured a second CLPS contract for its larger Griffin lander, set to launch in late 2024. Astrobotic joins commercial companies like Firefly Aerospace, Intuitive Machines, and Japanese firm iSpace in a growing market for lunar payload delivery services. Intuitive Machines will launch its first lander on January 12. It'll take a direct route to the Moon and could land between January 19-21.
Vulcan Centaur Rocket's debut flight
The January 8 launch marks the inaugural flight of ULA's Vulcan Centaur rocket, a vehicle that has experienced delays, pushing back its debut by years. ULA aims to launch several Vulcan flights next year and eventually complete a multi-billion-dollar 38-launch deal with Amazon for the Project Kuiper satellite broadband constellation. The success of Peregrine's mission will be vital not only for Astrobotic but also for ULA and its future projects.
