Athena Lunar Mission Set to Deploy 'Gracie' Hopper for Crater Exploration Near Moon's South Pole

A lunar mission involving a rocket-powered hopper is set to launch later this month. The spacecraft, named Athena, is expected to carry multiple payloads, including 'Gracie,' a small robotic explorer developed through a collaboration between Intuitive Machines and NASA. The launch is scheduled to take place from Florida's Space Coast within a four-day window opening on February 26. If the landing proceeds as planned, Athena will touch down on a plateau approximately 160 kilometres from the Moon's south pole, a region believed to contain water ice deposits.

Gracie's Mission Objectives and Design

As reported by space.com, Gracie is designed to perform five controlled hops across the lunar surface using thrusters. The initial hop is expected to reach 20 metres in height, followed by progressively higher leaps, culminating in a descent into a shadowed lunar crater known as Crater H. This crater, located approximately 500 metres from Athena's landing site, has a depth of around 20 metres.

Trent Martin, Senior Vice President of Space Systems at Intuitive Machines, stated in a NASA press conference that the hopper is intended to operate in extreme conditions, with its final hop aiming to explore the crater floor. Efforts are being made to maintain communication during this phase through Nokia's Lunar Surface Communication System, which aims to establish the first 4G/LTE network on the Moon.

Scientific Exploration and Data Collection

Gracie is expected to collect data using its onboard instruments. A key feature is the ‘water snooper' sensor, designed to detect water ice in the surrounding environment. Additionally, the hopper is equipped with cameras, which will provide images of the lunar surface and its movements. The mission is intended to demonstrate alternative exploration methods beyond traditional rover-based designs, with Gracie's success potentially influencing future lunar exploration strategies.

Additional Payloads on Athena

The Athena lander is set to carry several other payloads. NASA's Polar Resources Ice Mining Experiment 1 (PRIME-1) will conduct subsurface sampling using a drill capable of reaching depths of one metre. A mass spectrometer will be used to analyse these samples for signs of water and other volatile compounds. Another payload, the Mobile Autonomous Prospecting Platform (MAPP), developed by Lunar Outpost, will explore the lunar surface with high-resolution optical and thermal cameras. A smaller rover known as AstroAnt, developed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, will also be deployed from MAPP to collect temperature data.

Expected Landing and Operational Timeline

If Athena's landing is successful, operations on the Moon are expected to last approximately ten Earth days. The lander and its payloads will function until the lunar night sets in, cutting off solar power. This mission follows the success of Intuitive Machines' IM-1 mission, which landed the Odysseus spacecraft on the lunar surface in February 2024, marking the first private soft landing on the Moon. Despite minor landing issues, Odysseus provided valuable insights, setting a precedent for future commercial lunar missions.

Additional lunar missions by private companies are currently underway, including Firefly Aerospace's Blue Ghost and Tokyo-based ispace's Resilience lander, both launched aboard a Falcon 9 rocket in January. These missions form part of an increasing number of private sector efforts aimed at exploring and utilising lunar resources.