Home » US returns to lunar surface for first time in over 50 years: ‘Welcome to the moon’

US returns to lunar surface for first time in over 50 years: ‘Welcome to the moon’

Intuitive Machines’ spacecraft Odysseus lands after a 73-minute descent in apparently flawless touchdown near moon’s south pole

Odysseus moon landing: follow live

The United States has returned to the lunar surface for the first time in more than 50 years after a privately-built spacecraft named Odysseus capped a nail-biting 73-minute descent from orbit with an apparently flawless touchdown near the moon’s south pole.

The so-called “soft landing” on Thursday, which the founder of Texas-based company Intuitive Machines had given only an 80% chance of succeeding, was designed to open a new era of lunar exploration as Nasa works towards a scheduled late-2026 mission to send humans back to the moon.

Continue reading… The Guardian Read More Intuitive Machines’ spacecraft Odysseus lands after a 73-minute descent in apparently flawless touchdown near moon’s south poleOdysseus moon landing: follow liveThe United States has returned to the lunar surface for the first time in more than 50 years after a privately-built spacecraft named Odysseus capped a nail-biting 73-minute descent from orbit with an apparently flawless touchdown near the moon’s south pole.The so-called “soft landing” on Thursday, which the founder of Texas-based company Intuitive Machines had given only an 80% chance of succeeding, was designed to open a new era of lunar exploration as Nasa works towards a scheduled late-2026 mission to send humans back to the moon. Continue reading…