CAPE CANAVERAL: The first American spacecraft after half a century to land on the surface of the Moon is set to blast off early Monday, Western media reported.
As per reports this time the project is being carried out by the private industry.
A brand-new rocket called United Launch Alliance’s Vulcan Centaur, would be lifted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 2:18 am (7:18 GMT) for its maiden voyage, if weather is favorable.
The rocket will be carrying Astrobotic’s Peregrine Lunar Lander.
According to scientists Peregrine will touch down on a mid-latitude region of the Moon called Sinus Viscositatis, on February 23.
Pittsburgh-based Astrobotic’s CEO John Thornton ahead of the launch said leading the US back to the surface of the Moon for the first time since Apollo is a moment of great honor.
Until now, a soft landing on the Moon has only been made by national space agencies: the Soviet Union was first, in 1966, followed by the United States. The US till now is the only country in the world to put people on the Moon.
China has successfully landed on the Moon three times
China has successfully landed three times on the Moon over the past decade. The US space agency has paid Astrobotic more than $100 million for the project, while another contracted company, Houston-based Intuitive Machines, is also looking to land near the South Pole in February.
NASA, deputy associate administrator for exploration Joel Kearns has said that the project is going to allow more cost-effective and more rapidly accomplished trips to the lunar surface.
Controlled landing on the Moon’s surface is a challenging task, with roughly half of all attempts failing.
Earlier, private missions by many some countries including Japan, as well as a recent attempt by the Russian space agency, have failed.
