Astrobotic’s Peregrine Moon Lander Continues Data Collection Despite Failure to Land

Despite the failure of Astrobotic’s Peregrine moon lander to make a soft landing on the lunar surface, the spacecraft is still collecting valuable data for science. NASA announced on Thursday that payloads aboard the lander have been successfully collecting data. Astrobotic also shared a similar update on their social media platform, X.

NASA plans to extend Peregrine’s mission for as long as possible to continue data collection efforts. Joel Kearns, deputy associate administrator for exploration with NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, stated in a NASA announcement, “Measurements and operations of the NASA-provided science instruments on board will provide valuable experience, technical knowledge, and scientific data to future CLPS lunar deliveries.”

Astrobotic, a private space company based in Pittsburgh, launched Peregrine Mission One on January 8th in collaboration with NASA. The goal was to make the first US lunar landing in more than 50 years, with a planned landing in late February. However, a leak in Peregrine’s propulsion system was detected shortly after launch, and the company announced on Tuesday that there wasn’t enough propellant left to make a soft landing.

As of Thursday evening, Peregrine is still operationally stable. Astrobotic reported on Thursday that Peregrine has an estimated 48 hours of fuel remaining, much more than what was anticipated earlier. The lander is also carrying Iris Lunar Rover, a tiny rover built by Carnegie Mellon University students, which was supposed to take photos on the moon. A photo of Iris’s wheels and a fuel tank with the American flag was posted on X by Astrobotic, along with a message from Iris: “Hello, Earth!”

NASA’s Artemis mission to take humans back to the Moon has been delayed until 2025.