#lunarflashlight — Public Fediverse posts

A NASA lunar cubesat mission failed to go into orbit around the moon earlier this year when debris blocked propellant lines for the spacecraft’s thrusters: https://spacenews.com/clogged-propellant-lines-doomed-nasa-lunar-cubesat-mission/ - the Jet Propulsion Laboratory declared an end to the #LunarFlashlight mission May 12, five months after its launch as a secondary payload on a Falcon 9 that carried ispace’s HAKUTO-R M1 lunar lander.

NASA’s #LunarFlashlight mission to the Moon has failed, but the briefcase-size spacecraft will soon fly past Earth before heading into deep space: https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/nasas-lunar-flashlight-to-fly-by-earth - on Wednesday, May 17, at 4:44 UTC, the CubeSat will pass about 65,000 kilometers from our planet’s surface.

Man war ein hohes Risiko bei der Konstruktion und Missionsplanung eingegangen und hatte Pech: Die #NASA muss verkünden, dass die Mission #LunarFlashlight ihren Auftrag rund um den Mond nicht erfüllen kann: https://winfuture.de/news,136263.html?utm_source=Mastodon&utm_medium=ManualStatus&utm_campaign=SocialMedia

NASA's Lunar Flashlight mission is abandoned after failing to get into lunar orbit due to a thruster malfunction. The spacecraft was designed to search for water ice on the moon's surface at the south pole.

#NASA #LunarFlashlight #CubeSat #Moon

https://www.nasa.gov/feature/jpl/nasa-calls-end-to-lunar-flashlight-after-some-tech-successes

"NASA Calls End to Lunar Flashlight After Some Tech Successes"

"While the CubeSat couldn’t reach the lunar South Pole to help seek ice, it fulfilled several technology goals that will empower future missions for the benefit of humanity."

".. Lunar Flashlight’s miniaturized propulsion system struggled to provide sufficient thrust .."

https://www.nasa.gov/feature/jpl/nasa-calls-end-to-lunar-flashlight-after-some-tech-successes

#NASA #Artemis #ArtemisI #LunarFlashlight #Mond #Raumfahrt #Raumsonde #SLS #Spaceflight

12.5.2023

The miniaturized propulsion system, the first of its kind ever flown, of NASA's #LunarFlashlight has proved unable to generate enough thrust to get into lunar orbit, despite months of effort by the operations team: https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/nasa-calls-end-to-lunar-flashlight-after-some-tech-successes - because the CubeSat cannot complete maneuvers to stay in the Earth-Moon system, NASA has called an end to the mission

What a rollercoaster ride that was. I'm crestfallen that the ops team couldn't get #LunarFlashlight to the Moon, but we learnt so much from this plucky CubeSat. It's been an honor to lead the comms for this tiny spacecraft and to work with such an inspiring team 🛰️❤️ Read all the details in today's news release: https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/nasa-calls-end-to-lunar-flashlight-after-some-tech-successes

The NASA JPL and Georgia Tech operations team for #LunarFlashlight have a plan to get the spacecraft back on track in the wake of its thruster issues. Modified maneuvers begin today 🤞 https://blogs.nasa.gov/smallsatellites/2023/02/08/nasa-eyes-new-lunar-cubesat-orbit-propulsion-challenges-continue/

Lots of news from small #lunar missions ... 1) #LunarFlashlight faces significant challenges in its goal of getting to the #Moon, with the target orbit changed: https://blogs.nasa.gov/smallsatellites/2023/02/08/nasa-eyes-new-lunar-cubesat-orbit-propulsion-challenges-continue/. 2) #CAPSTONE is in good health following a communications issue that began in late January: https://advancedspace.com/capstone-mission-resiliency-at-moon/ and https://blogs.nasa.gov/artemis/2023/02/08/capstone-to-test-technologies-after-recovery-from-communications-issue/. And 3) #IntuitiveMachines is moving the landing site for its first lunar lander mission "IM-1" to the south polar region of the Moon: https://spacenews.com/intuitive-machines-moves-landing-site-of-first-mission-to-lunar-south-pole/

#space #moon #lunarflashlight

A tiny NASA moon probe can't reach lunar orbit as planned - but some inventive navigating may yet let it complete it's mission.

https://www.space.com/nasa-moon-probe-lunar-orbit-impossible

While NASA’s #LunarFlashlight is largely healthy and communicating with the Deep Space Network, the mission operations team has discovered that three of its four thrusters are underperforming - the team, which first observed the reduced thrust three days after launch, is working to analyze the issue and provide possible solutions: https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/nasas-lunar-flashlight-team-assessing-spacecrafts-propulsion-system

Status update for #LunarFlashlight: Our little spacecraft is happy and healthy, though three of its thrusters are not providing as much oomph as expected. The mission team is now modifying their plans to get the small satellite into its planned near-rectilinear halo orbit. More: https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/nasas-lunar-flashlight-team-assessing-spacecrafts-propulsion-system #space #NASA #NASAJPL #SmallSat

#LunarFlashlight is really moving since its launch on Saturday night/Sunday morning. Follow along via NASA Eyes: https://eyes.nasa.gov/apps/solar-system/#/sc_lunar_flashlight

"NASA’s #LunarFlashlight has communicated with mission controllers and confirmed it is healthy after launching Sunday, Dec. 11, at 2:38 a.m. EST (Saturday, Dec. 10, at 11:38 p.m. PST) from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. About 53 minutes after launch, the SmallSat was released from its dispenser to begin a four-month journey to the Moon to seek out surface water ice in permanently shadowed craters at the lunar South Pole." https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/nasas-lunar-flashlight-has-launched-follow-the-mission-in-real-time #Moon #NASAJPL

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RT @LaurieofMars
Good to have @NASA_Orion home, and #LunarFlashlight flying! More info on the latter below. I may have been up in the middle of the night to screen shot them passing on @nasa_eyes (zoom in to see) — one moon-bound, one returning. Do you think they waved to each other?? 👋👋👋🚀🛰 https://twitter.com/erinspacecase/status/1602007687071502336 https://t.co/0sAi0TKCTd
https://twitter.com/LaurieofMars/status/1602019032957231104

The Falcon 9 launch of the Japanese lander #Hakuto-R - with rovers from the UAE and Japan and other payloads - and American orbiter #LunarFlashlight to the #Moon was a full success this morning: https://ispace-inc.com/news-en/?p=4128 and https://www.nasa.gov/feature/jpl/nasa-s-lunar-flashlight-has-launched-follow-the-mission-in-real-time, with more links in https://skyweek.wordpress.com/2022/12/11/live-blog-zu-artemis-heimkehr-und-hakuto-start/

That beautiful moment when you see those squiggly lines over a DSN antenna (LFL) 📡 😍 #LunarFlashlight #SIGNALACQUIRED

Ready for the @SpaceX launch of @ispace_inc HAKUTO-R Mission 1, including the @nasa #LunarFlashlight smallsat! Livestream is about to start for launch at 11:38 pm PST https://youtu.be/UaaF0IgzGSI

The launch of the #HAKUTO-R Mission 1 (Japanese Moon lander, with a UAE-supplied rover) and #LunarFlashlight (U.S. orbiter) to the #Moon on the same Falcon 9 remains planned for 7:38 UTC: three different webcasts should run at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XzfCmNz3pk4 and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lLmnMO2LHx0 and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UaaF0IgzGSI and information is provided at https://www.spacex.com/launches/mission/?missionId=ispace-m1 and https://ispace-inc.com/m1 plus https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2022/12/hakuto-r-m1/

What #ispace wants to achieve with the first #private #lunar #rover #landing
▶️ Completion of all #deepspace orbital control #maneuvers before LOI (Lunar #Orbit Insertion)
▶️ Reaching the lunar gravitational field/lunar orbit
▶️ Completion of all orbit control maneuvers in lunar orbit
▶️ Completion of the lunar landing
▶️ Establishment of a steady system state after the lunar landing
https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2022/12/hakuto-r-m1/#more-90110
#SpaceNavigation #SpaceCompany #PrivateSpaceflight #Hakuto #JAXA #Moon #Lander #NASA #LunarFlashlight #Water #UAE #Emirates #Rashid

OK, we have a new launch date and time for #LunarFlashlight: Dec. 11, at 2:38 a.m. EST (Saturday, Dec. 10, at 11:38 p.m. PST). Read more about the mission here: https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/nasas-lunar-flashlight-smallsat-readies-for-launch

#SpaceX will have a live feed of the #ispace launch starting 15 minutes before liftoff: https://www.spacex.com/launches/ispace-m1/

EDIT: Launch has been STOOD DOWN. New launch date TBC. More from SpaceX: https://twitter.com/SpaceX/status/1598106762850500609

OLD POST: LUNAR FLASHLIGHT LAUNCH LIVESTREAM: At 12:37 a.m. PST (3:37 a.m. EST) Thursday morning, the ispace HAKUTO-R Mission 1 will launch on a SpaceX Falcon 9 -- #LunarFlashlight will be using the launch as a rideshare and its deployment will be one of the final events in the livestream. Watch here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UaaF0IgzGSI #Moon #CubeSat #SmallSat #Artemis

<Launch stand down>

The SpaceX ispace HAKUTO-R Mission 1 launch that was scheduled for 12:39 am PST, Wednesday morning has been stood down and rescheduled for 12:37 am PST THURSDAY morning "to allow for additional pre-flight checkouts", according to the official SpaceX Twitter feed (https://twitter.com/SpaceX/status/1597803133325172737).

So I guess we need to be patient for another 24 hours. But #LunarFlashlight will be on its way to the Moon, soon! More on the mission here: https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/nasas-lunar-flashlight-smallsat-readies-for-launch

#space #moon

Today at 8:39 UTC a Falcon 9 launch is planned of *two* new lunar missions, Japan's commercial lander #HAKUTO-R M1 with the UAE rover #Rashid among the payloads and the U.S. orbiter #LunarFlashlight: webcasts at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XzfCmNz3pk4 (from 6:30 UTC) and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UaaF0IgzGSI (from 8:30 UTC) and many links at https://skyweek.wordpress.com/2022/11/30/zwei-mondmissionen-mehr-sollen-artemis-folgen/

Interestingly, another small satellite, NASA's Lunar Flashlight, will also follow a near-rectilinear halo orbit after it launches later this month to seek out water ice in the lunar South Pole craters: https://www.nasa.gov/feature/jpl/nasa-s-lunar-flashlight-ready-to-search-for-the-moon-s-water-ice

Never overlook these tiny spacecraft; they're essential pathfinders for the bigger missions to come. #lunarflashlight #nasa #jpl #space