If you have previously registered, but forgotten your password, click here.
Robert Pearlman
Intuitive Machines IM-2 update (3/4/25 | 1730 CT)
Flight controllers confirmed that Athena completed lunar orbit insertion with enough accuracy to forego the IM-2 mission's optional lunar correction maneuver.
Athena continues to be in excellent health, completing lunar orbits every two hours, waiting for the sun to rise on her intended south pole region landing site, Mons Mouton.
Athena's next planned maneuver is Descent Orbit Insertion (DOI), which is designed to lower her orbit to make a landing attempt at 11:32 on March 6.
Intuitive Machines IM-2 update (3/5/25 | 0800 CT)
Athena continues to be in excellent health in Low Lunar Orbit (LLO). She's completed 24 of her 39 orbits, waiting for the sun to rise on her Mons Mouton landing site.
Robert Pearlman
Intuitive Machines IM-2 update (3/6/25 | 0827 CT)
Athena completed Descent Orbit Insertion at 4:33 a.m. CST. Right now, flight controllers are gathering data and checking the lander's landing systems for accuracy.
Intuitive Machines is still planning on an 11:30 a.m. CST landing time.
For the second time in a little over a year, Intuitive Machines has landed a commercial spacecraft on the moon. And, for the second time, that touchdown has left the lander functioning, but at an "off-nominal" angle.
Intuitive Machines, which in February 2024 achieved the first private soft landing on the moon, seemingly repeated its success on Thursday (March 6).
"Any time that you ship a spacecraft to Florida for flight and end up a week later operating on the moon, I declare that a success," Steve Altemus, chief executive officer at Intuitive Machines, said in a post-landing press conference at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. "Now, we think that we have been very successful to this point, however, I do have to tell you that we don't believe we are in the correct attitude on the surface of the moon yet again."
Robert Pearlman
Intuitive Machines release
Intuitive Machines Executes Southernmost Lunar Landing and Operates Payloads
Intuitive Machines has announced the IM-2 mission lunar lander, Athena, landed 250 meters from its intended landing site in the Mons Mouton region of the lunar south pole, inside of a crater. This was the southernmost lunar landing and surface operations ever achieved.
Images downlinked from Athena on the lunar surface confirmed that Athena was on her side. After landing, mission controllers were able to accelerate several program and payload milestones, including NASA's PRIME-1 suite, before the lander's batteries depleted.
With the direction of the sun, the orientation of the solar panels, and extreme cold temperatures in the crater, Intuitive Machines does not expect Athena to recharge. The mission has concluded and teams are continuing to assess the data collected throughout the mission.
This southern pole region is lit by harsh sun angles and limited direct communication with the Earth. This area has been avoided due to its rugged terrain and Intuitive Machines believes the insights and achievements from IM-2 will open this region for further space exploration.
Robert Pearlman
NASA release
NASA Receives Some Data Before Intuitive Machines Ends Lunar Mission
Shortly after touching down inside a crater on the Moon, carrying NASA technology and science on its IM-2 mission, Intuitive Machines collected some data for the agency before calling an early end of mission at 12:15 a.m. CST Friday.
As part of the company's second Moon delivery for NASA under the agency's CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative and Artemis campaign, the IM-2 mission included a drill to bring lunar soil to the surface and a mass spectrometer to look for the presence of volatiles, or gases, that could one day help provide fuel or breathable oxygen to future Artemis explorers.
Planned to land at Mons Mouton, IM-2 touched down at approximately 11:30 a.m. March 6, more than 1,300 feet (400 meters) from its intended landing site. Intuitive Machines said images collected later confirmed the lander was on its side, preventing it from fully operating the drill and other instruments before its batteries were depleted.
The IM-2 mission landed closer to the lunar South Pole than any previous lander.
"Our targeted landing site near the lunar South Pole is one of the most scientifically interesting, and geographically challenging locations, on the Moon," said Nicky Fox, associate administrator for science at NASA Headquarters in Washington. "Each success and setback are opportunities to learn and grow, and we will use this lesson to propel our efforts to advance science, exploration, and commercial development as we get ready for human exploration of Mars."
The Nova-C lander, named Athena, captured and transmitted images of the landing site before activating the technology and science instruments. Among the data collected, NASA's PRIME-1 (Polar Resources Ice Mining Experiment 1) suite, which includes the lunar drill known as TRIDENT (The Regolith and Ice Drill for Exploring New Terrain), successfully demonstrated the hardware's full range of motion in the harsh environment of space. The Mass Spectrometer Observing Lunar Operations (MSOLO) as part of the PRIME-1 suite of instruments, detected elements likely due to the gases emitted from the lander's propulsion system.
"While this mission didn't achieve all of its objectives for NASA, the work that went into the payload development is already informing other agency and commercial efforts," said Clayton Turner, associate administrator for space technology, NASA Headquarters. "As we continue developing new technologies to support exploration of the Moon and Mars, testing technologies in-situ is crucial to informing future missions. The CLPS initiative remains an instrumental method for achieving this."
Despite the lander's configuration, Intuitive Machines, which was responsible for launch, delivery, and surface operations under its CLPS contract, was able to complete some instrument checkouts and collect 250 megabytes of data for NASA.
"Empowering American companies to deliver science and tech to the Moon on behalf of NASA both produces scientific results and continues development of a lunar economy," said Joel Kearns, deputy associate administrator for Exploration in the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters. "While we're disappointed in the outcome of the IM-2 mission, we remain committed to supporting our commercial vendors as they navigate the very difficult task of landing and operating on the Moon."
NASA's Laser Retroreflector Array, a passive instrument meant to provide a reference point on the lunar surface and does not power on, will remain affixed to the top deck of the lander. Although Intuitive Machines' Nova-C Hopper and Nokia's 4G/LTE Tipping Point technologies, funded in part by NASA, were only able to complete some objectives, they provided insight into maturing technologies ready for infusion into a commercial space application including some checkouts in flight and on the surface.
Robert Pearlman
Intuitive Machines release
IM-2: The Southernmost Step in Human Exploration
This was the southernmost lunar landing ever achieved — a historic step into one of the most extreme environments in the solar system.
By Steve Altemus, Intuitive Machines CEO
Spaceflight is a complex endeavor. It is just the way it is. Aerospace is unforgiving, but it's where we thrive — pushing boundaries, overcoming challenges, and pulling back the darkness to extend humanity's reach into the solar system. IM-2 was no exception. For every mission, Intuitive Machines must accept a degree of risk and the possibility of failure. The key to our success is to learn, iterate, and continue moving forward.
The goal was audacious: land at the Moon's south pole, a region marked by jagged terrain, deep craters, and brutal cold. Past missions have avoided this area — where the Sun cuts low across the horizon, casting long shadows that obscure hazards and limit direct data transmission with Earth. It's also a region that we believe holds the keys to the future of space exploration. Scientists believe frozen water is trapped beneath the surface, and unlocking these resources could fuel humanity's next leap to the red planet
On March 6, 2025, our lunar lander, Athena, touched down inside a shallow crater on the Mons Mouton region of the Moon after traveling over one million kilometers. This was the southernmost lunar landing ever achieved — a historic step into one of the most extreme environments in the solar system. While Athena was not upright after landing, the mission pressed forward. Our teams accelerated payload operations, including NASA's PRIME-1 drill suite, transmitting critical data before Athena's batteries depleted. In just 12 hours of surface operations, we gathered extraordinarily valuable data for our customers, including validating Nokia's 4G/LTE network operation, proving that our technology and expertise can deliver in the face of adversity.
IM-2 was about more than just landing — it was about demonstrating that Intuitive Machines has the world's most capable Lunar Data Network. From the moment Athena launched, every mission step validated our ability to communicate and operate in deep space. We executed precision orbital maneuvers, autonomously guided our spacecraft across 39 lunar orbits, and performed high-bandwidth data transmissions that outpaced IM-1's capabilities by five times.
The strength of our Lunar Data Network was tested in real-time, not just for our mission but for others reaching for space. During the mission, two rideshare customers faced critical situations in orbit. Intuitive Machines' Lunar Data Network stepped in when these payloads needed assistance, providing data transmission support. We did this because space exploration isn't a singular effort — it takes all of us working together to push the envelope together.
These advancements directly support our execution of NASA's $4.8 billion Near Space Network Services (NSNS) contract, helping secure Intuitive Machines' role as a leader in lunar communications and national security space operations. The IM-2 mission confirmed that we are sending data to and from the Moon and building the highway to enable a long-term lunar presence.
IM-2 also broke new ground in the performance of our proprietary propulsion system, which was designed, 3D printed, and tested in-house. Using renewable cryogenic liquid methane and liquid oxygen — materials present elsewhere in our solar system — IM-2 reached lunar orbit in only five days and validated the complete propulsion system through six main engine firings. We believe this system is also capable of supporting future missions to Mars and beyond.
In the mission's final moments, Athena powered down. But unexpectedly, the lander woke up one last time, sending a transmission that resonated beyond technology—it was personal. Athena's last data transmission contained the names of every Intuitive Machines team member who made her mission possible.
If someone had told us six years ago that we would attempt something this ambitious with the same outcome, we would have charged forward with the same toughness and competence. The razor-thin margins of lunar success don't deter us; they define us. IM-2 was another step in proving that Intuitive Machines is not just landing on the Moon — we believe we are leading the way in commercializing space and building the infrastructure for humanity's next frontier. And we're just getting started.
advertisement