The lunar module lands and the United States returns to the moon after more than 50 years innovation

The Lunar Module photographed by Intuitive Machines on its way to the Moon, with Earth in the background – Image: Intuitive Machines/NASA

The robotic lunar module from Intuitive Machines touched down on the moon's surface on Thursday night (22), marking the United States' return to Earth's natural satellite after more than 50 years.

Although it succeeded in confirming the landing, NASA stated that the landing conditions are still unclear, due to a communication problem caused by a weak radio signal.

Shortly before landing on the moon, engineers were trying to solve an identified navigational problem. The correction was necessary to determine the spacecraft's altitude and horizontal speed.

The Intuitive Machines lunar module approaches the Moon – Image: Intuitive Machines/NASA

The module entered the lunar orbit on Wednesday (21) and orbited about 92 km from the satellite's surface. The company stated that it successfully received images and data from the flight.

The mission, called IM-1, has a lander module more than four meters high and carries six instrument payloads to collect data on the lunar environment.

🚀 Landing on the moon? Yes, it should be noted that the correct verb for the feat is ansar, which is landing a spacecraft on the moon. Landing is a landing that occurs here, on Earth.

The Intuitive Machines module took an image of the lunar crater before landing – Image: Intuitive Machines/NASA

The landing on lunar soil was the first carried out by the United States since the Apollo 17 flight in 1972. The NASA mission, which was carried out 51 years ago, carried astronauts Gene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt. Since then, no human has returned to the natural moon.

The module, led by Intuitive Machines and supported by NASA, aims to prepare for sending astronauts to the moon by 2026, through the Artemis 2 mission.

Before humans returned to the Moon, NASA chose to hire private companies to transport equipment to the natural satellite. In the case of Intuitive Machines, this was the company's first attempt at a lunar mission.

Recently, India and Japan also managed to successfully land on the moon.