A special lunar lander that set off from the United States and suffered a fuel leak during its journey is now heading towards Earth and is expected to burn up in the atmosphere. This was announced by the Pittsburgh-based Astrobotic company.
The lander, named Peregrine, was launched on January 8 on a new Vulcan rocket manufactured by United Launch Alliance. However, shortly after separation from the rocket, an explosion occurred on the spacecraft, making it clear that it would not be able to make a soft landing on the Moon. Since the beginning of the journey, Astrobotic has been issuing regular updates on Peregrine’s status, including the running of the scientific experiments it carries and the collection of spaceflight data for NASA and other space agencies.
According to the company’s latest assessment, the spacecraft is currently in an Earth-ward orbit and will most likely burn up in Earth’s atmosphere. Peregrine has now been in space for more than five days and is about 390,000 kilometers from our planet.
Astrobotic was closely followed by space watchers who hoped the lander would make a hard landing on the Moon. Now, however, it has become clear that this goal will not be realized either. In addition to science hardware, Peregrine also carries cargo for Astrobotic’s private customers, including a sports drink can, a physical Bitcoin, human and animal ashes and DNA.
Astrobotic is the latest private organization to fail to achieve a soft lunar landing, joining an Israeli nonprofit and a Japanese company in the past.
Source: https://www.cioupdate.com.tr/haberler/abdnin-aya-cikarma-araci-artik-dunyaya-dogru-yolda/
