Blue Ghost nears lunar landing, unveils moon's hidden face
Blue Ghost, owned by Firefly Aerospace, recorded the latest photos from the Moon's orbit. The footage shows close-ups of the vast craters on the side we cannot see from Earth. The spacecraft is set to land on the Moon in a few days.
Blue Ghost, a private spacecraft, has just sent video footage from the far side of the Moon. It is part of a mission to deliver ten scientific and technological instruments to the Moon's surface. It is currently conducting a series of manoeuvres to lower its orbit around the Moon and is continuing its course to the Mare Crisium region on the Moon’s surface, where it plans to land on March 2.
Blue Ghost is developed and operated by Firefly Aerospace, a private space technology company. Although this mission is funded as part of the NASA Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative, which means NASA pays for the service of delivering payloads to the Moon, the lander itself belongs to Firefly Aerospace, and the company is responsible for its development, construction, and operations. NASA commissioning missions to private companies instead of building its spacecraft is part of the commercialization strategy for lunar flights. Firefly Aerospace is one of many private entities participating in this initiative.
Blue Ghost will study heat flow on the Moon
The Firefly Aerospace team reported the completion of another orbital manoeuvre around the Moon on February 19, which lasted 3 minutes and 18 seconds. This manoeuvre shifted the lander from a high to a much lower elliptical orbit around the Moon. Shortly after completing this action, Blue Ghost recorded incredible images of the far side of the Moon from approximately 120 kilometres from its surface.
On board the Blue Ghost lander, NASA placed a range of advanced equipment. The mission aims to study the heat flow from the Moon's interior, the interaction between the plume and the surface, and the study of the crust’s electric and magnetic fields. Additionally, X-ray images of Earth's magnetosphere will be taken. There are also plans to test technologies such as regolith collection and adhesion, computer radiation resistance, and dust mitigation using electrodynamic fields.
This is essential for future crewed missions to the Moon
The 14-day mission aims to help in planning future crewed trips to the Moon. The climax will be capturing high-resolution images of an eclipse, when Earth will obscure the Sun over the Moon's horizon, which is planned for March 14.
The following day, Blue Ghost will capture the sunset on the Moon, providing data on lunar dust, which, according to Eugene Cernan from the Apollo 17 mission, causes the horizon to glow. Later, after sunset, the lander will operate for several hours in the lunar night. Studying the dust is important for future crewed missions, as without an atmosphere, this dust can hover above the surface, posing a risk of getting into equipment and the astronauts' respiratory systems.
Currently, Blue Ghost is transmitting data regarding this phenomenon, preparing to descend further towards the Moon's surface. According to Firefly Aerospace, the team is experiencing planned communication interruptions due to the lander passing over the far side of the Moon. When it arrives on the visible side, they will continue to receive data and finalize plans for the next manoeuvre to allow Blue Ghost to continue approaching the lunar surface, maintaining the schedule for the landing on March 2.
