Colorado-based Lunar Outpost behind rover set to explore Moon's south pole for first time
Following a successful launch of Intuitive Machines' lunar lander, part of NASA's Commercial Lunar Payload Services initiative, the team from Colorado-based Lunar Outpost was back to work.
"About 20 seconds after that rocket SpaceX Falcon 9 cleared the launchpad, you saw people running out of the bleachers to get over to mission control and to start checking on our system," said Michael Moreno, Vice President of Strategy for Lunar Outpost.
The lander is expected to reach the moon's surface on Thursday. Onboard is Lunar Outpost's exploration rover MAPP, or mobile autonomous prospecting platform.
"Our flight teams are locked in and me, personally, I'm excited but I'm not really going to buy into all of that excitement until we are operating on the lunar surface," Lunar Outpost co-founder Julian Cyrus said.
Cyrus and Moreno helped launch the Golden startup in 2017. They are now on the verge of a historic voyage, one that's expected to be the first commercial rover on the moon and the first rover ever to explore the Moon's south pole.
According to Lunar Outpost, the lunar south pole is one of the most strategically and scientifically significant locations in space. Permanently shadowed craters are believed to contain water ice deposits, a critical resource for producing fuel, oxygen, and drinking water.
"Every one of us feels like we are grateful to have a front row seat in history and to actually take part in it, it's a rare opportunity. It's once-in-a-lifetime," Moreno said.
Adding to the technical and scientific firsts of the mission, Moreno says they're paving the way for a lunar economy, with NASA purchasing the first commercially collected moon dust from the company.
"What's the business model for selling payload space? What's the pricing model? ... What's the process in business innovation? Those are even steps beyond solving these really hard technical challenges," he added.
They'll include payloads or experiments from companies like Nokia, demonstrating the first-ever cellular network on the moon, as well as partnership with Adidas and Juventus, one of the world's largest European football clubs, making them the first professional sports organizations involved in moon exploration.
"You don't really see football clubs on the moon very often," Cyrus said, "you know it's awesome to see, It allows people a different avenue and a different path to be a part of these awesome missions and programs that we have," he said.
According to NASA, Intuitive Machines is targeting their Moon landing no earlier than 12:32 p.m. EST on Thursday, March 6. Their coverage begins at 11:11:30 a.m. on NASA+.
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