CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) 鈥 The first U.S. moon landing attempt in more than 50 years appeared to be doomed after a private company's spacecraft developed a 鈥渃ritical鈥 fuel leak just hours after Monday's launch.
Pittsburgh-based Astrobotic Technology managed to orient its lander toward the sun so the solar panel could collect sunlight and charge its battery, as a special team assessed the status of what was termed 鈥渁 failure in the propulsion system.鈥
It soon became apparent, however, that there was 鈥渁 critical loss of fuel," further dimming hope for what had been a planned moon landing on Feb. 23.
Late Monday, the company said the leak was continuing and estimated that the lander would start losing solar power in about 40 hours.
The trouble was reported about seven hours after Monday鈥檚 predawn liftoff from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. United Launch Alliance鈥檚 Vulcan rocket provided the lift for Astrobotic鈥檚 lander, named Peregrine, putting it on a long, roundabout path to the moon.
A propulsion system problem 鈥渢hreatens the ability of the spacecraft to soft land on the moon," the company said. The lander is equipped with engines and thrusters for maneuvering, not only during the cruise to the moon but for lunar descent.
Astrobotic released a photo from a lander-mounted camera, which the company said showed a 鈥渄isturbance鈥 in a section of thermal insulation. That aligns with what is known so far of the problem, the company said.
Astrobotic was aiming to be the on the moon, something only four countries have accomplished. A second lander from a Houston company is due to launch next month. NASA gave the two companies millions to build and fly their own lunar landers.
The space agency wants the privately owned landers to scope out the place before astronauts arrive while delivering tech and science experiments for the space agency, other countries and universities as well as odds and ends for other customers. Astrobotic's contract with NASA for the Peregrine lander was $108 million and it has more in the pipeline.
Before the flight, NASA鈥檚 Joel Kearns, deputy associate administrator for exploration, noted that while using private companies to make deliveries to the moon will be cheaper and quicker than going the usual government route, there will be added risk. He stressed that the space agency was willing to accept that risk, noting Monday: 鈥淓ach success and setback are opportunities to learn and grow.鈥
The last time the U.S. launched a moon-landing mission was in December 1972. Apollo 17鈥檚 Gene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt became the 11th and 12th men to walk on the moon, closing out an era that has remained NASA鈥檚 pinnacle.
The space agency鈥檚 new Artemis program 鈥 named after the twin sister of Apollo in Greek mythology 鈥 looks to return astronauts to the moon鈥檚 surface within the next few years. First will be a , possibly before the end of the year.
Highlighting Monday's moonshot was the long-delayed initial test flight of the Vulcan rocket. The 202-foot (61-meter) rocket is essentially an upgraded version of ULA鈥檚 hugely successful workhorse Atlas V, which is being phased out along with the company鈥檚 Delta IV. Jeff Bezos' rocket company, Blue Origin, provided the Vulcan's two main engines.
ULA declared success once the lander was free of the rocket's upper stage, nearly an hour into the flight and before the spacecraft's propulsion system malfunctioned and prevented the solar panel from properly pointing toward the sun.
Landing on the moon has long been a series of hits and misses. The Soviet Union and the U.S. racked up a string of successful moon landings in the 1960s and 70s, before putting touchdowns on pause. China joined the elite club in 2013 and . But last year also saw and a slam into the moon. An Israeli nonprofit crashed in 2019.
Next month, SpaceX will provide the lift for a lander from Intuitive Machines. The Houston company's Nova-C lander takes a more direct one-week route to the moon.
Besides flying experiments for NASA, Astrobotic drummed up its own freight business, packing the 6-foot-tall (1.9-meter-tall) Peregrine lander. On board the lander: a chip of rock from Mount Everest, toy-size cars from Mexico and ashes and DNA of deceased space enthusiasts, including 鈥淪tar Trek鈥 creator Gene Roddenberry and science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke.
The Navajo Nation recently sought to have the launch delayed because of the human remains. saying it would be a 鈥減rofound desecration鈥 of a celestial body revered by Native Americans. Astrobotic chief executive John Thornton said the December objections came too late but promised to try to find 鈥渁 good path forward鈥 with the Navajo for future missions.
One of the spaceflight memorial companies that bought room on the lander, Celestis, said in a statement that no single culture or religion owns the moon and should not be able to veto a mission. More remains are on the rocket鈥檚 upper stage, which was boosted into a perpetual orbit around the sun reaching as far out as Mars.
Cargo fares for Peregrine ranged from a few hundred dollars to $1.2 million per kilogram (2.2 pounds), not nearly enough for Astrobotic to break even. But for the first flight, that's not the point, according to Thornton.
鈥淎 lot of people鈥檚 dreams and hopes are riding on this,鈥 Thornton said days before the flight.
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