Moon landing: US lander successfully touches down in ‘giant leap forward for all of humanity’
The Odysseus lander has successfully touched down after a “nail-biting” descent saw the first ever privately owned craft reach the moon’s surface.
The Intuitive Machines’ lander is also the first US lander to successfully reach the moon in more than 50 years – since the last of NASA’s Apollo programme in 1972.
There was applause and cheers in the Houston control room as landing success was confirmed after a few tense minutes.
“I know this was a nail-biter, but we are on the surface, and we are transmitting,” Intuitive Machines CEO Steve Altemus said.
“Welcome to the moon.”
This was the scene at Intuitive Machines HQ in Houston after teams heard the spacecraft had reached the moon’s surface
Flight controllers at Intuitive Machines in Houston celebrate the landing Pic: Intuitive Machines via AP
The 14-ft tall, six-footed carbon fibre and titanium lander descended from a moon-skimming orbit and guided itself to the surface, searching for a relatively flat spot among the cliffs and craters to make its landing near the south pole.
Back on Earth, the team had to wait well past the expected touchdown time for confirmation that there was a signal before celebrating.
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New moon mission explained
Odysseus was launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida, last week.
The last time a US craft made a similar descent was in 1972, when Apollo 17’s Gene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt were aboard, and the pair remain the last humans to have walked on the moon.
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Intuitive Machine’s IM-1 Nova-C lunar lander. Pic: Intuitive Machine via AP
NASA administrator Bill Nelson called the mission a “triumph” and a “giant leap forward for all of humanity”.
In a televised statement following the successful landing, he said: “Today for the first time in more than half a century the US has returned to the moon.
“For the first time in the history of humanity, an American company launched and led the voyage up there.
“Today is a day that shows the power and promise of NASA’s commercial partnerships.
“Congratulations to everyone involved in this great and daring quest at Intuitive Machines, SpaceX and right here at NASA.
“What a triumph – Odysseus has taken the moon. This feat is a giant leap forward for all of humanity. Stay tuned.”
Intuitive Machines’ lunar lander separating from the rocket’s upper stage and heading toward the moon. Pic: SpaceX via AP
NASA is the mission’s main sponsor, paying $118m (£93.5m) to put its experiments on board as part of a programme which could eventually see astronauts return to the moon later in the decade.
The space agency has ambitions to make lunar trips a more regular affair and, eventually, build a base on the moon.
Odysseus is also carrying six other payloads from commercial companies.
It has landed closer to the moon’s south pole than any other craft.
The region has many more craters, cliffs and boulders than the equator, where the Apollo landings were in the 60s and 70s.
Scientists hope to find layers of ice, or perhaps Arctic-style permafrost, from which they can create hydration for astronauts – something which would enable them to stay for prolonged missions.
Intuitive Machines’ entry is the latest in a series of landing attempts by countries and private outfits looking to explore the moon and, if possible, capitalise on it.
Japan made a landing last month, joining the US, Russia, China and India in the club of countries to have visited the surface.
Countries in South and Southeast Asia have been coping with a weeks-long heatwave which has seen record temperatures sweep parts of the region.
Pupils in the Philippines, India and Bangladesh have been told to stay at home and learn remotely due to a severe health risk.
Schools in Cambodia have also cut back on their hours.
Cambodia faces its hottest temperature in 170 years, according to meteorologists – as high as 43C (109F).
Bangkok in Thailand has reached 40C (104 F), but the heat index is said to have topped 50 C (122 F) due to the heat being trapped among the mass of buildings.
The United Nations Children’s Fund warned in April that the heat could put the lives of millions of children at risk and asked people who care for them to take extra precautions.
A spokesperson for UNICEF said around 243 million children were exposed to hotter and longer heatwaves.
A woman drinks from a public tap in India. Pic: AP
They said the increased heat was “putting them at risk of a multitude of heat-related illnesses, and even death”.
Thirty people in Thailand have died from heatstroke in the past month, according to data from the country’s health ministry.
People are being advised to avoid outdoor activities and to stay hydrated.
Several towns in Myanmar were included on lists of the hottest spots globally last month, with temperatures reaching 48.2C (118F) in at least one case.
People stock up on water in India. Pic: AP
Parts of eastern India also experienced their hottest April on record.
Kerala, on India’s west coast, this week instructed all schools and colleges to close until Monday, while influencers in Bangladesh have encouraging people to plant trees in response to the record heat.
Benjamin Horton, director of the Earth Observatory of Singapore, said there were three factors for heatwaves: a naturally-occurring climate phenomenon known as El Nino, an increase in global temperatures, and human-induced climate change.
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Brazil is currently experiencing another climate phenomenon – La Nina – with 39 dead and 68 missing in floods across the country.
More than 24,000 people have been forced to leave their homes due to the flooding.
Scientists believe the naturally-occurring phenomenon has intensified due to the impact of climate change.
China has been branded “a bully” and an international lawbreaker after its ships blasted Philippine vessels with water cannon in the South China Sea.
Sky News was on board the BRP Bagacay when a Chinese vessel fired water at it, causing significant damage.
Philippine coastguard spokesman Jay Tarriela told Sky News that this week’s confrontation was the first time China had used “such aggression” against their ships.
“The metal parts and the railing were bent. The canopy was also destroyed. So this came as a surprise for us that China never hesitated to use brute force,” he said.
“It completely justifies us calling The People’s Republic of China a bully country.”
Jay Tarriela, a spokesman for the Philippine Coastguard, told Sky News that China is a ‘bully’
The Philippine coastguard was on a resupply mission to the Scarborough Shoal to deliver food and fuel to Philippine fishermen when they were struck.
The submerged reef lies in disputed waters. China claims sovereignty over the reef but it is much closer to the Philippines and lies within its legally recognised exclusive economic zone.
The vessel Sky News was on board was the closest the coastguard had ever been to the shoal – just 600 metres away from it.
Asked if the mission to the shoal was a provocative move by the Philippine coastguard, Commodore Tarriela denied they were “poking the bear” but rather “driving the bear out of our own territory”.
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Sky witnesses China-Philippine confrontation
The Philippines has been stepping up its patrols in the area under the instruction of President Bongbong Marcos, and reasserting its claim to the shoal in recent months.
It has raised the spectre of open conflict. While neither side currently wants that, there is now a greater threat of open conflict.
Asked what the end game was for the Philippines, Commodore Tarriela said their priority was to “tell the world” about China’s aggression.
China’s coastguard fired water at Philippine coastguard vessel BRP Bagacay while Sky was onboard
He said their secondary goal was to ensure “like-minded states” also made China “fall in line and respect international law”.
“Otherwise, it’s everybody’s loss,” he added.
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Philippine government policy is not to resist using water cannon against Chinese vessels – and Commodore Tarriela insisted that policy remains in place after the confrontation.
The government also remains intensely determined to protect the waters it believes it has every right to operate in.
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“We’re not going to yield and we’re not going to surrender a square inch of our territory,” Commodore Tarriela insisted.
Beijing has called the action its own coastguard took as “necessary”.
Speaking at the Chinese foreign ministry’s daily news conference, spokesperson Lin Jian described the coastguard’s conduct as “professional, proper, and lawful”.
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