Despite the rollover, the Odysseus lander may continue to operate on the lunar surface for 24 hours. Intuitive Machines, the private space company behind Odysseus, Tweeted some pictures photos taken by the spacecraft and provide more updated information on how long the team expects it to remain operational.
Because of where Odysseus landed, the panels and antennas were not oriented exactly as planned, making it harder to generate power and communicate. Controllers on Earth will continue collecting data until its solar panels are no longer exposed to sunlight, which they expect to happen Tuesday morning.
The landing almost didn’t happen at all. During a press conference on Friday, executives explained that the safety switches for the lander’s two ranging lasers were engaged, meaning they could not be used to guide the vehicle during landing, New York Times Report.
Fortunately, the spacecraft is equipped with NASA’s experimental lidar system. Engineers at Intuitive Machines scrambled at the last minute to devise a software patch that retrieved the required altitude and velocity data from NASA systems to ensure the spacecraft landed safely.
Intuitive Machines CEO Steve Altemus also confirmed at the press conference that the only downward-facing shipment was an artwork sent by a commercial customer, referring to the artist Jeff Koons ( 125 microsatellite sculptures designed by Jeff Koons. Problems with Odysseus’ navigation system also derailed the deployment of the EagleCam, which was supposed to pop up during the lander’s descent. The Embry-Reed Aeronautical University team that developed the camera told CNBC that Intuitive Machines may still deploy the camera in the future.