Intuitive Machines Inc. made history Thursday when the Houston-based space-exploration company’s Odysseus spacecraft became the first commercial lander to successfully reach the moon. The uncrewed Odysseus lander is also the first American spacecraft to reach the lunar surface since Apollo 17’s Challenger lunar module in December 1972.
Intuitive Machines shares
LUNR,
-11.16%
soared more than 37% after hours Thursday on the news of the successful landing. The stock ended the day’s regular trading down 11.2% but has climbed 184.5% in the last three months. Odysseus, which is carrying NASA science and technology instruments, reached the lunar south pole at 6:23 p.m. Eastern time Thursday, after an autonomous descent that concluded its journey to the moon. A nerve-wracking few minutes followed while Intuitive Machines’ mission control awaited communications from the probe, before confirmation that a faint signal was received from Odysseus’ high-gain antenna. “Our equipment is on the surface of the moon, and we are transmitting,” said the mission director on a livestream of the landing.
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Intuitive Machines shares
LUNR,
-11.16%
soared more than 37% after hours Thursday on the news of the successful landing. The stock ended the day’s regular trading down 11.2% but has climbed 184.5% in the last three months. Odysseus, which is carrying NASA science and technology instruments, reached the lunar south pole at 6:23 p.m. Eastern time Thursday, after an autonomous descent that concluded its journey to the moon. A nerve-wracking few minutes followed while Intuitive Machines’ mission control awaited communications from the probe, before confirmation that a faint signal was received from Odysseus’ high-gain antenna. “Our equipment is on the surface of the moon, and we are transmitting,” said the mission director on a livestream of the landing.
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