On Wednesday, January 15, SpaceX is set to launch two private moon landers in a historic mission that will help pave the way for future lunar exploration. The two landers, Blue Ghost and Resilience, will be launched aboard a Falcon 9 rocket from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 1:11 a.m. EST (0611 GMT).
The mission marks a significant milestone in the commercialization of space, as both landers are part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program, designed to foster collaboration between private companies and the U.S. space agency in advancing lunar exploration.
The first lander, Blue Ghost, is built by Firefly Aerospace, a Texas-based company. It will carry 10 science payloads for NASA to the lunar surface, making it the first-ever lunar mission for Firefly. The mission, aptly named “Ghost Riders in the Sky,” will begin with the Blue Ghost circling Earth for 25 days before embarking on its journey to the moon.
The second lander, Resilience, is developed by Tokyo-based ispace. This will be ispace’s second attempt to reach the lunar surface, following a failed touchdown attempt of its first lander in 2023.
The first mission reached lunar orbit but failed during its landing attempt due to a malfunctioning altitude sensor. For its second mission, Resilience will take a more measured approach, taking four to five months to reach the moon.
This time, the lander will attempt to land in the Mare Frigoris, or “Sea of Cold,” region, a different area from its predecessor’s planned landing site. One of Resilience’s key payloads is a microrover called Tenacious, which will collect samples of lunar dirt and rock as part of a NASA contract. The microrover will provide valuable scientific data about the moon’s surface composition.
Both of these landers will play an essential role in NASA’s Artemis program, which aims to return humans to the lunar surface and establish a sustainable presence on the moon by the end of the decade.
The data gathered by the Blue Ghost and Resilience landers will contribute to NASA’s understanding of the lunar environment, including the presence of water ice in permanently shadowed craters and the effects of long-term exposure to the lunar surface.
In addition to the moon lander mission, SpaceX has another major event planned for Wednesday. The company will also conduct the seventh test flight of its Starship vehicle, the largest and most powerful rocket ever built.
This test flight is scheduled for 5:00 p.m. EST (2200 GMT) and will be closely watched by the space community, as it represents another critical step in SpaceX’s efforts to develop a fully reusable rocket capable of carrying humans to the moon, Mars, and beyond.
Both the launch of the Blue Ghost and Resilience landers, as well as the Starship test flight, will be webcasted, with NASA’s coverage beginning at 12:30 a.m. EST (0530 GMT) for the landers’ mission.
SpaceX and NASA will provide live updates, making it accessible for space enthusiasts around the world to witness these remarkable milestones in space exploration. The combined events showcase the rapid advancements in both commercial and government-led space missions, demonstrating a new era of exploration and collaboration.