BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. — The second launch in NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services program faced a delay, SpaceX announced Tuesday night.
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The company stood down from the launch of its Falcon 9 rocket, scheduled for 12:57 a.m. Wednesday at Kennedy Space Center, citing “off-normal methane temperatures.”
The rocket will play an important role in getting the mission underway, as it will carry the Nova-C lunar lander to space.
Intuitive Machines’ IM-1 mission is targeting a soft landing on the Moon’s South Pole.
The lander, named Odysseus, will carry several NASA and commercial payloads.
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It will also demonstrate precision landing technologies, and new communication and navigation capabilities.
In coordination with @SpaceX, our IM-1 mission launch is targeted for a multi-day launch window that opens no earlier than 12:57 a.m. Eastern Standard Time on February 14th from Launch Complex 39A at @NASA Kennedy Space Center in Florida.https://t.co/I4rIKcGaTk pic.twitter.com/qxEhicI80h
— Intuitive Machines (@Int_Machines) February 5, 2024
NASA said this mission will be an important step for future Artemis missions.
Odysseus is also equipped with a project from students at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.
“EagleCam” would be the first student-built project to land on the Moon.
The university said it will take a picture of the lander right before it sets down.
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SpaceX said liftoff is now scheduled for Thursday, Feb. 15 at 1:05 a.m.
Standing down from tonight’s attempt due to off-nominal methane temperatures prior to stepping into methane load. Now targeting Thursday, February 15 at 1:05 a.m. ET for Falcon 9's launch of the @Int_Machines IM-1 mission from Florida → https://t.co/bJFjLCiTbK
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) February 14, 2024
SpaceX said after separation, the first stage booster will land at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.
There’s a good chance you’ll hear a sonic boom several minutes after that happens.
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