Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost Successfully Soft-Lands on the Moon

Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost Mission 1 lander completed a soft landing on the moon on March 2. This makes Firefly the first commercial company to have its tech successfully touchdown on the moon.

“Firefly is literally and figuratively over the Moon,” expressed Firefly CEO Jason Kim. “This bold, unstoppable team has proven we’re well equipped to deliver reliable, affordable access to the Moon, and we won’t stop there. With annual lunar missions, Firefly is paving the way for a lasting lunar presence that will help unlock access to the rest of the solar system for our nation, our partners, and the world.”

Blue Ghost launched from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on January 15. 45 days, 2.8 million miles, and 27 GB of data downlinking later, it arrived on the moon’s Mare Crisium at around 2:34 am on March 2. The touchdown was upright, stable, and within 100 meters of its landing target near Mons Latreille. Communications were quickly confirmed with the Mission Operations Center in Cedar Park, Texas.

The lander was carrying a wide assortment of NASA technology as part of the agency’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative and Artemis campaign. The 10 science and technology instruments Blue Ghost transported will be spending 14 days (Earth-time) in operation on the moon.

For the next two weeks, Blue Ghost will be supporting NASA demonstrations ranging from subsurface drilling to dust mitigation experiments. It will also capture high-def photos of a total eclipse on March 14 and a lunar sunset on March 16.

As part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative, Firefly’s Blue Ghost Mission 1, named Ghost Riders in the Sky, sets the tone for the future of exploration across cislunar space as the first commercial company in history to achieve a fully successful soft-landing on the Moon.

“On behalf of our entire team, I want to thank NASA for entrusting Firefly as their lunar delivery provider,” continued Kim. “Blue Ghost’s successful Moon landing has laid the groundwork for the future of commercial exploration across cislunar space.”

FMI: www.fireflyspace.com