ANTARIKSA — US Astrobotic’s lunar lander suddenly disappeared from mission control monitors shortly before falling into Earth’s atmosphere early Friday morning. The plane, which was damaged on its way to the moon, was directed back to earth and will burn up as it passes through the atmosphere. Meanwhile, the remains (if any) are targeted to fall in the South Pacific.
Astrobotic said they lost contact with Peregrine at around 15.50 EST on Thursday, January 18 2024 or 3.50 WIB on Friday. Even though it disappeared, Astrobotic claimed that Peregrine had been destroyed and that its fall was well controlled and safe.
“This shows the vehicle has completed a controlled re-entry process in open waters in the South Pacific at 16.04 EST. We are waiting for independent confirmation from government entities,” Astrobotic wrote early Friday morning.
Further information will emerge this Friday afternoon when Astrobotic holds an official teleconference about the Peregrine mission and its fate.
Also read: Today, the plane carrying human remains will fall to Earth in a burning condition
Peregrine launched on January 8, on the debut flight of United Launch Alliance’s (ULA) new Vulcan Centaur rocket. The Vulcan Centaur did its job well, but the Peregrine experienced a serious anomaly shortly after launching from the top of the rocket.
The problem was a fuel leak, which Astrobotic said was caused by a stuck valve, which in turn triggered a rupture in the oxidizer tank. The leak eliminated Peregrine’s chances of reaching the moon.
Having floated freely in the vacuum of space, Peregrine was directed back to earth and met his death.
Diagram showing the predicted re-entry point for Astrobotic’s Peregrine lunar lander in the Earth’s atmosphere on Friday, January 19 2024 Indonesian time. Image: Astrobotic
In fact, the United States hopes that this mission will make history proud of its nation. To date, no private spacecraft has successfully landed on the lunar surface.
Peregrine has become the new controversial space sector. Of its 20 types of payload, it carries commemorative capsules belonging to two space burial companies, Celestis and Elysium Space. The contents of the capsule are human remains.
Also read: Ignoring Navajo Nation Protests, Funeral Company on the Moon: We don’t want to be dictated by religion
Five of Peregrine’s payloads are NASA science instruments, which will map lunar conditions. However, Peregrine has been warned not to pollute the moon with ‘garbage’ from Earth. Source: Space.com
2024-01-19 05:43:00
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