On January 8 Nasa Launched the Peregrine lunar lander, launched with high hopes which is now not in their control and will be back to earth. This spacecraft, built by Astrobotic and launched atop a United Launch Alliance Vulcan Centaur rocket, encountered a critical fuel leak shortly after separating from its booster stage. Due to this malfunction this mission was not able to achive its desire goal of making soft landing on Moon.
Astrobotic had big plans to make a major achievement in private moon exploration. But running out of fuel not only crushed those plans but also put Peregrine on a path to crash into Earth.The latest analysis shows that Peregrine will probably end up falling into the Earth's atmosphere and breaking apart when it reenters.
"Figuring out what's going to happen to the vehicle has been really tough because of the propellant leak. It's making it hard to predict where it's going to go," said Astrobotic in their latest update. The team in Pittsburgh has been dealing with a lot of unexpected issues and doing everything they can to keep the lander working for as long as possible. But the truth is, Peregrine's days of operation are limited.
While the exact date and location of the lander remains uncertain as Astrobotics has not provided specific details. However, the company has acknowledged the inevitability of the spacecraft's fiery end.Peregrine's plight is a setback for Nasa's efforts to engage commercial partners in its lunar exploration initiatives. The lander carried five Nasa science instruments among other payloads, all of which will be lost. however, is unlikely to deter the space agency's ambitious plans to leverage commercial capabilities for future lunar missions.
Astrobotic has assured that it is working closely with Nasa and other stakeholders to ensure the most responsible course of action is taken to conclude Peregrine's mission. The space industry will undoubtedly learn from this experience, applying the lessons to future endeavors in our quest to explore the cosmos.