Firefly Gets First Glimpse of Moon, NASA Instrument Checkouts Continue

An image from the top deck of Firefly's Blue Ghost lunar lander in the darkness of space with the lit Moon in the distance.
An image taken from the top deck of Firefly Aerospace’s lunar lander of the Moon in the distance. Credit: Firefly Aerospace

 

NASA’s science and technology instruments aboard Firefly’s Blue Ghost Mission 1 are a step closer to the Moon. After almost two weeks in Earth orbit, Firefly announced Thursday that Blue Ghost successfully completed its second engine burn, placing the lander in the correct position to leave Earth’s orbit and continue its journey to the Moon. At the same time, the spacecraft got its first glimpse of the Moon from Earth’s orbit.   

Routine assessments while Blue Ghost is in transit show that all NASA payloads continue to be healthy. Firefly and NASA’s payload teams will continue to perform payload health checkouts and operations before reaching the Moon, including calibrating NASA’s Lunar Environment Heliospheric X-ray Imager (LEXI), continued transit operations of the Lunar GNSS Receiver Experiment (LuGRE), and analysis of radiation data collected from the Radiation Tolerant Computer (RadPC) technology demonstration. 

NASA’s Artemis blog will continue to provide updates on this lunar delivery. Additional mission updates can also be found on Firefly’s Blue Ghost Mission 1 page. 

Blue Ghost Conducts First Burn, Science Operations, Captures Eclipse

Firefly’s Blue Ghost continues its journey to the Moon carrying 10 NASA science and technology instruments. Four days into the mission, the lunar lander completed its first main engine burn. This milestone is the first of several maneuvers that will position the lander in a trajectory towards the Moon. After 25 days orbiting Earth, Blue Ghost will continue its four-day journey to lunar orbit and orbit the Moon for 16 days before it begins descent operations to the lunar surface as part of NASA’s Artemis campaign.  

Jointly developed by NASA and the Italian Space Agency, the Lunar GNSS Receiver Experiment (LuGRE) technology demonstration acquired Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) signals, and calculated a navigation fix at nearly 52 Earth radii: more than 205,674 miles (331,000 kilometers) from Earth’s surface. This achievement suggests that Earth-based GNSS constellations can be used for navigation at nearly 90% of the distance to the Moon, an Earth-Moon signal distance record. It also demonstrates the power of using multiple GNSS constellations together, such as GPS and Galileo, to perform navigation. Throughout its journey, LuGRE will continue expanding our knowledge of Earth-based navigation systems in space as it acquires and tracks signals on its way to the Moon, during lunar orbit, and for up to two weeks on the lunar surface. 

During this Earth transit phase, the Firefly mission team has continued to ensure the spacecraft remains healthy. The most recent visuals from space include footage of Earth eclipsing the Sun. 

As the 45–day transit to the Moon continues, follow NASA’s Artemis blog for agency science and tech updates aboard Blue Ghost Mission 1, and Firefly’s Blue Ghost Mission 1 page for additional operational updates. 

Moon Bound: Blue Ghost Captures First Image, Performs Health Checks

On Jan. 15, Firefly Aerospace successfully launched 10 NASA science and technology instruments on the company’s first CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) delivery. The NASA instrument teams are performing initial health checks and collecting data ahead of the lunar landing in early March. Flight controllers for Blue Ghost Mission 1 said Wednesday that the company’s spacecraft continues to meet mission milestones including acquisition of signal, and maintaining communications through its Mission Operations Center in Cedar Park, Texas.

Firefly Aerospace's Blue Ghost Mission 1 spacecraft in the darkness of space captures a first image from the top deck of its lunar lander.
The first image from space of Firefly’s Blue Ghost mission 1 lunar lander as it begins its 45-day transit period to the Moon. The top deck of the lander is visible here with the X-band antenna and NASA’s Lunar Environment heliospheric X-ray Imager (LEXI) payload. Credit: Firefly Aerospace

Six NASA payloads aboard the flight, including the Radiation Tolerant Computer (RadPC) technology demonstration, Stereo Camera for Lunar Plume-Surface Studies (SCALPSS), Lunar PlanetVac (LPV), Lunar Instrumentation for Subsurface Thermal Exploration with Rapidity (LISTER), Lunar GNSS Receiver Experiment (LuGRE), and the Electrodynamic Dust Shield (EDS) are already sending initial data back to Earth. All NASA payloads are healthy, and additional payload data sets are expected during this transit period, as the mission continues its 45-day trajectory before landing on the surface of the Moon.

Stay tuned to NASA’s Artemis blog for agency science and tech aboard Blue Ghost Mission 1 updates, as well as Firefly’s Blue Ghost Mission 1 page for additional operational updates.

Firefly Lunar Lander On Its Way To the Moon 

Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost lunar lander successfully powered on as it continues its way to the Moon, carrying NASA science demonstrations as part of the agency’s CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative and Artemis campaign.   

Blue Ghost is expected to land on the lunar surface on Sunday, March 2 and, throughout its mission, NASA’s scientific instruments aim to test and demonstrate lunar subsurface drilling technology, regolith sample collection capabilities, global navigation satellite system abilities, radiation tolerant computing, and lunar dust mitigation methods. The data captured could also benefit humans on Earth by providing insights into how space weather and other cosmic forces impact Earth.  

This concludes our live launch coverage. Continue to follow along for more CLPS updates: nasa.gov/clps.  Additional mission updates can be found on Firefly Aerospace’s press pages.  

 

Firefly Aerospace Lunar Lander Separates From SpaceX Falcon 9 Rocket 

At approximately 2:17 a.m. EST, Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost lunar lander separated from SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket. Aboard are NASA scientific instruments flying to the Moon as part of the agency’s CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative and Artemis campaign. Coming up, Blue Ghost will power on and continue its journey to the Moon. 

Liftoff! Firefly Lunar Lander Begins Journey to the Moon

Image shows streak from SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket after liftoff on Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2025.
Creating a golden streak in the night sky, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost Mission One lander soars upward after liftoff from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2025 as part of NASA’s CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative. The Blue Ghost lander will carry 10 NASA science and technology instruments to the lunar surface to further understand the Moon and help prepare for future human missions. Photo credit: NASA/Frank Michaux

At 1:11 a.m. EST SpaceX launched its Falcon 9 rocket and Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost lunar lander from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Aboard are a suite of NASA scientific instruments to the Moon as part of the agency’s CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative and Artemis campaign. These instruments aim to help the agency develop capabilities needed to explore the Moon under Artemis and in advance of human missions on the lunar surface.

The next major milestone will be when Blue Ghost separates from Falcon 9, which is expected to occur in approximately one hour or around 2:17 a.m. EST.

Live Countdown Coverage Begins for First Firefly Commercial Lunar Flight 

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost Mission One lander prepares for a launch to the Moon on Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2025 from Launch Complex 39A at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida as part of NASA’s CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative.
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost Mission One lander prepares for a launch to the Moon on January 14 from Launch Complex 39A at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida as part of NASA’s CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative. The Blue Ghost lander will carry 10 NASA science and technology instruments to the lunar surface to further understand the Moon and help prepare for future human missions. Liftoff is targeted for 1:11 a.m. EST Wednesday, Jan. 15. Photo Credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket stands ready for a 1:11 a.m. EST liftoff from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Watch now on NASA+, NASA TV, or the agency’s website. 

Aboard Falcon 9 is Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost lunar lander, which is carrying 10 NASA scientific instruments to the Moon as part of the agency’s CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative and Artemis campaign.  

Weather officials with Cape Canaveral Space Force Station’s 45th Weather Squadron are predicting a 90% chance of favorable weather conditions for launch, with the primary weather concerns revolving around the cumulus cloud rule and liftoff winds.  

Here’s a look at some of today’s countdown and ascent milestones. All times are approximate: 

COUNTDOWN 
Hr/Min/Sec          Event
– 00:38:00             SpaceX Launch Director verifies go for propellant load
– 00:35:00             RP-1 (rocket grade kerosene) loading begins
– 00:35:00             1st stage LOX (liquid oxygen) loading begins
– 00:16:00             2nd stage LOX loading begins
– 00:07:00             Falcon 9 begins pre-launch engine chill
– 00:05:00             Dragon transitions to internal power
– 00:01:00             Command flight computer to begin final prelaunch checks
– 00:01:00             Propellant tanks pressurize for flight
– 00:00:45             SpaceX Launch Director verifies go for launch
– 00:00:03             Engine controller commands engine ignition sequence to start
– 00:00:00             Falcon 9 liftoff 

LAUNCH, LANDING, AND SEPARATION
Hr/Min/Sec         Event
00:01:12                Max Q (moment of peak mechanical stress on the rocket)
00:02:28              1st stage main engine cutoff (MECO)
00:02:31               1st and 2nd stages separate
00:02:38              2nd stage engine starts (SES-1)
00:03:28              Fairing Separation 

00:06:04              1st stage entry burn begins
00:06:30              1st stage entry burn end
00:07:49              2nd stage engine cutoff (SECO-1)
00:07:58              1st stage landing burn begin
00:08:20             1st stage landing burn end
01:05:36               Blue Ghost separates from 2nd stage 

 

 

 

Artemis Teams Successfully Test Uninterruptible Power for Mobile Launcher 

infographic lists the eight verification and validation tests to support Artemis II
NASA

Teams with NASA’s Exploration Ground Systems (EGS) Program at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, successfully tested the new uninterruptible power supply for mobile launcher 1 while it’s in Kennedy’s Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB). This marks the next set of integrated ground systems testing the EGS teams are conducting to prepare for the Artemis II crewed mission.

During this test, engineers turned off the power to the mobile launcher and verified new batteries, which are located in High Bay 3 of the VAB, did not negatively impact any systems. These batteries provide power to the mobile launcher, SLS (Space Launch System) rocket and Orion spacecraft and allow teams to safe all systems in the unlikely event the structure loses power while it’s inside the VAB. There are similar batteries that are used for the same purpose at Launch Complex 39B, from which crewed Artemis missions will launch. 

The Artemis II test flight will be NASA’s first mission with crew under the Artemis campaign, sending NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, as well as Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen, on a 10-day journey around the Moon. 

Artemis I Orion Spacecraft Returns to Florida

The Artemis I Orion crew module, now known as the Orion Environmental Test Article (ETA), returned to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Dec. 21, 2024, following an 11-month test campaign at the agency’s Neil Armstrong Test Facility in Sandusky, Ohio.

This is not the first time the ETA has been at Kennedy. After splashing down in the Pacific Ocean on Dec. 11, 2022, following its journey around the Moon during the Artemis I mission, the spacecraft was transported by truck from Naval Base San Diego in California to Kennedy’s Multi Payload Processing Facility (MPPF) to be reconfigured from spacecraft to test article and complete a series of crew module functional tests.

Now returned to the spaceport after testing at the Armstrong Test Facility, engineers will begin testing on the ETA in Kennedy’s MPPF to undergo propulsion functional testing, which includes putting the crew module’s twelve reaction control system (RCS) thrusters through a simulated hot fire. RCS thrusters provide control of rotation while in orbit, during re-entry, and certain abort scenarios.

Once testing is complete, the ETA will travel down the road to Kennedy’s Space Systems Processing Facility for an acoustic noise demonstration test that will help improve future acoustic testing for NASA and Lockheed Martin, the agency’s primary contractor for Orion. In addition to undergoing further testing at Kennedy, teams will remove hardware from the ETA for reusability studies that could impact future Artemis missions. With NASA’s Artemis campaign, we are exploring the Moon for scientific discovery, technology advancement, and to learn how to live and work on another world as we prepare for human missions to Mars.

Watch timelapse footage of the ETA arriving at NASA Kennedy’s Multi Payload Processing Facility (MPPF).

NASA Science, Tech Launching to Moon in Mid-January

NASA, SpaceX, and Firefly Aerospace are targeting 1:11 a.m. EST Wednesday, Jan. 15, for the launch of Firefly’s Blue Ghost Mission 1, the next delivery to the Moon through NASA’s CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative.

The Blue Ghost lander will launch on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 39A at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The flight will deliver 10 NASA science instruments and technology demonstrations to the lunar surface, to further our understanding of the Moon and help prepare for future human missions.

As part of the agency’s Artemis campaign, NASA is working with multiple U.S. companies to deliver science and technology to the Moon for the benefit of humanity.

For more information, visit: https://www.nasa.gov/clps