A privately funded lunar lander has moved one step closer to its historic moon landing. The Nova-C spacecraft, developed by Intuitive Machines, has been installed inside the payload fairing of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket in preparation for liftoff. Trent Martin, the vice president for space systems at Intuitive Machines, expressed his emotions as the fairing closed, geering up for the launch from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. The planned launch window in February will target a lunar landing try on Feb. 22, with a possible backup opportunity in March. The mission, known as IM-1, aims to land the Nova-C near the impact crater called Malapert A, seen as a region of great interest for its potential water ice deposits. The lander will carry six NASA science instruments through the Commercial Lunar Payload Services program. Including technology that has the potential to revolutionize how propellant is managed in the microgravity environment, ensuring an efficient use of fuel in future spaceflight missions. The Nova-C project represents a significant step in the ongoing efforts to establish a permanent human presence on the moon, with NASA’s Artemis program. The launch of Nova-C will follow the recent mission of Astrobotic’s Peregrine spacecraft, which didn’t succeed due to a fuel leak shortly after launch. The successful landing of Nova-C would mark a major milestone in private space exploration.
