"We put the [Navigation Doppler Lidar for Precise Velocity and Range Sensing] as a tech demo and as a test, we weren't planning to use it... for the actual mission... but now we are. So, basically, it is the primary system to help provide the velocity and altitude information." —
The displays in Nova Control turn purple when they lose telemetry. As the spectral power from Odie's radios faded to the noise floor and all the displays turned purple, we played Purple Rain and said goodnight. We'll look for Odie with the dawn (like Gandalf).
#adlunam
Good stuff Tony. We’re still working through the detailed nav data to get the exact post-contact dynamics right. But I think this is very plausible.
#adlunam
A clearer picture of the Odysseus landing (my unofficial interpretation) This will be added to the main infographic which depicts the whole IM-1 mission once I get solid confirmation that this is how it went down.
NASA has awarded Intuitive Machines $30 million as a prime contractor to complete a Lunar Terrain Vehicle Services contract. The company’s global Moon RACER team will be tasked with creating a feasibility roadmap to develop and deploy a Lunar Terrain Vehicle on the Moon using
Great test flight today
@SpaceX
! Watching the forward leaning development back during Falcon1 changed my thinking on space systems. Keep pushing the envelope!
Odysseus continues to generate solar power on the Moon, allowing flight controllers to continue gathering data from the south pole region in furtherance of the
IM-1 Mission objectives.
Flight controllers are analyzing new solar charging data and using the additional time to
Super excited for the
@JAXA_en
SLIM team waking their lander up. Lunar night is no joke. Imagine leaving your favorite electronics outside for 14 nights in Antarctica!
Such a strange and magical feeling to see the Moon in the sky and see in your mind’s eye a wondrous device you had a hand in creating orbiting it north to south and waiting for its chance to land.
#adlunam
Our official IM-1 mission ended on February 29th, as Odie was not designed to survive the Moon’s harsh temperatures without sunlight. While we wait for the possibility of hearing from Odie once the sun shines on the solar panels prior to the end of the month, watch our mission
Meet the guy who led the team that developed NDL
@NASA_Langley
. This system allowed
@Int_Machines
IM-1 lander, Odysseus, to safely land at Malapert A crater, after the primary system failed. Nice job Mr. Hines!
@CrainTim
Congrats to our very own Texas Ex and former
@TexasFootball
player Tim Crain on playing a critical role in yesterday’s historic moon landing.
He had his eyes on a future in aerospace engineering long ago as his sophomore year bio in 1992 media guide shows.
What Starts Here🤘🏻
IM-1 Mission Vehicle Health Update 🧵
1/6 The IM-1 mission Nova-C class lunar lander continues to be in excellent health, and we are preparing for our engine commissioning maneuver.
Following nominal launch vehicle separation, the spacecraft autonomously brought up all sensors
And congratulations to
@Dr_ThomasZ
for believing in the value of commercial spaceflight to lower the cost of lunar missions. He advocated inside NASA for the CLPS program and made it a reality. Implementing change always takes guts. Today we have seen the first of many successes.
Fun fact, our Nova-C landers share 88% design commonality by mass per mission. The difference is payloads & their accommodations. This means we're building reliability into lunar transport by leveraging experience with the same core systems mission-after-mission.
@Int_Machines
See the little white patch that flashes in and off in the comparison pics? That is called the “blast zone” from the plume. The exact mechanism that causes it to be that size still isn’t understood.
So immensely proud to have been a part of this mission, getting data down and commanding Oddie. The whole Goonhilly OPS team has put in a lot hard work to support this incredible mission.
Thanks
@CrainTim
for the Cornwall shout out!
Good night Odysseus.😴
Alongside our colleagues
@CSIRO_ATNF
#Murriyang
Parkes, we supported communications for
@Int_Machines
mission to become the first commercial spacecraft to land on the Moon. We were also proud to provide comms for
@NASA
's Lunar Node 1 payload.
#OverTheMoon
🌖
Keeping in touch even in space. 📞
@Int_Machines
first lunar mission IM-1 successfully landed on the Moon's south pole region a little over a week ago.
Murriyang, our Parkes radio telescope downloaded critical data from the lander before it powered down for the lunar night.
Space is no longer the final frontier for Texas Engineers. I'm proud to share that Cockrell School engineers and
@CrainTim
, CTO of
@Int_Machines
and an alum of
@UTAerospace
, have successfully supported Intuitive Machines land on the moon.
Congratulations and hook 'em! 🤘
Great show
@WeHaveMECO
and
@SciGuySpace
. Although I must admit it’s unsettling to hear your own name mentioned so many times around a big event like this. :-).
#adlunam
🎙️ Somehow, I forgot to tweet about having
@SciGuySpace
on the show this week for a fantastic discussion of
@Int_Machines
’ epic landing, some future of CLPS thoughts, as well as a bit of a dive into the big budget questions facing
@NASA
:
Intuitive Machines flight controllers successfully fired the first liquid methane and liquid oxygen engine in space, completing the IM-1 mission engine commissioning. This engine firing included a full thrust mainstage engine burn and throttle down-profile necessary to land on
Today’s TCM fired at 1400 CST for 8 seconds, and it is the final maneuver before Odysseus’ largest challenge to date, Lunar Orbit Insertion (LOI), scheduled for February 21, 2024.
Odysseus continues to be in excellent health and is approximately 68,000 km from the Moon. Over the
Maruthi Akella, a professor in the
@CockrellSchool
, and his research team supported the development of an onboard guidance algorithm that will help
@Int_Machines
precisely target and point its lander toward its destination near the Moon’s south pole.
What starts here y'all 🤘
Intuitive Machines successfully transmitted its first IM-1 mission images to Earth on February 16, 2024. The images were captured shortly after separation from
@SpaceX
's second stage on Intuitive Machines’ first journey to the Moon under
@NASA
's CLPS initiative.
After two great days of science and exploration presentations at the European Lunar Symposium, some lunar outreach with students from here in Dumfries. Fantastic setting in the Crichton church. Back at it tomorrow with the lunar community.
#adlunam
Texas Governor
@GregAbbott_TX
has appointed Intuitive Machines VP of Production and Operations
@Astro2fish
as a member of the Executive Committee of the Texas Aerospace Research and Space Economy Consortium.
The Texas Space Commission will work to strengthen Texas’ proven
Our friends (and ops partners) from Down Under at
@fugro
SpAARC sent us an Aussie snack package for translunar ops. But Red Team Mission Director, Trent Martin, wants to know where the vegemite sandwiches are!?!?
#adlunam
#opsmunchies
With some of the team heading to the Cape for launch and some of us staying here for operations there have been a lot of Friday farewells along the lines of, "Next time I see you, we'll be on the way to the Moon."
#adlunam
#lifegoals
The IM-1 mission Nova-C class lunar lander has launched on SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket and successfully commissioned in space by establishing a stable attitude, solar charging, and radio communications contact with the Company’s mission operations center in Houston.
@TopeImade
Watched you specifically on several plays on the South end of DKR yesterday. You were gutting it out and punishing people down the field…great way to wrap your senior day. Made this old lineman smile. But I think your best days are still in front of you. Hook’Em!
Ahead of the IM-1 mission liftoff, Intuitive Machines CEO Steve Altemus shared heartfelt words with the team, reflecting on the significance of their collective effort.
#AdLunam
Iniciamos con la gira de actividades en Houston, acompañé a
@makugo
en una visita a
@Int_Machines
, sus directivos nos presentaron los avances de los proyectos que desarrollan en el sector espacial, como el programa para proporcionar acceso logístico a la superficie lunar.
Is there a market for lunar rideshare?
@Int_Machines
and
@SEOPSLLC
announced an agreement today for lunar rideshare services.
Aside from NASA, who needs a ride to the Moon? I take a look at what the interest might.
Watch to learn more:
Happy
#NationalAstronautDay
to our VP of Productions and Operations, former NASA astronaut
@Astro2fish
. Jack's unmatched expertise and work ethic, along with his infectious enthusiasm, make him truly exceptional. As Jack would say, exploring space is like "a burrito of
We were delighted to host
@Int_Machines
today, showcasing
@SpaceParkLeic
& providing a platform for an inspiring talk on the science of the
#Moon
and the exciting lunar missions & capability offered by the dynamic US space exploration company.
#SpaceParkConversations
In coordination with
@SpaceX
, our IM-1 mission launch is targeted for a multi-day launch window that opens no earlier than 12:57 a.m. Eastern Standard Time on February 14th from Launch Complex 39A at
@NASA
Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Standing down from tonight’s attempt due to off-nominal methane temperatures prior to stepping into methane load. Now targeting Thursday, February 15 at 1:05 a.m. ET for Falcon 9's launch of the
@Int_Machines
IM-1 mission from Florida →