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Artists concept of Israeli Beresheet lunar probe firing thrusters
for moon landing slated for April 11, 2019. Credit: SpaceIL/IAI
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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FL- Israeli’s first ever mission to the moon - Beresheet – is on course to complete a thrilling first of its kind lunar touchdown later today, Thursday, April 11, that also counts as the first ever commercial mission to land on the Moon.
The Beresheet mission marks a historic achievement for Israel- becoming only the seventh country to send a probe into lunar orbit- and for commercial space activities as this tiny probe is the first privately funded mission to reach the Moon.
After a 7 week mission from the Earth to the Moon, Beresheet is all set for the do or die moon landing attempt.
We will have a full story post landing as I simultaneously cover tonights SpaceX Falcon Heavy launch.
You can watch the landing coverage live here:
Live on SpaceIL's Youtube channel:
Live on SpaceIL and
IAI's Facebook pages
Here is the landing schedule from SpaceIL:
Here is the landing schedule from SpaceIL:
Beresheet’s planned landing time today is: 10:25 pm Israel time (3:25 pm ET)
The landing process will start at 10:05 pm Israel time (3:05 pm ET)
The live broadcast will begin at 9:45 pm Israel time (2:45 pm ET)
Watch my live on set interview at i24 after lunar capture last week:
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Artists concept of Israeli Beresheet lunar probe after
completing moon landing slated for April 11, 2019. Credit: SpaceIL/IAI
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Liftoff
of the private
Beresheet moon lander for Israel atop a recycled SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket took place in the
evening of Feb.
21 at 8:45 p.m. EST (0145 GMT Friday) from Space
Launch Complex-40 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, FL.
It flew as a rideshare payload bolted to the primary payload – namely the Nusantara Satu communications satellite for Indonesia.
The Beresheet lunar lander is a joint endeavor funded and built by Israeli nonprofit SpaceIL and Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI). It marks Israel’s first lunar mission and also counts as being the world’s first privately funded lunar mission.
If all continues to go well lunar touchdown is scheduled for April 11 at Mare Serenitatis (Sea of Serenity) on the Moon’s northern hemisphere on the upper right side as seen from Earth.
Liftoff of the private Beresheet moon lander for Israel atop a recycled SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket took place in the evening of Feb. 21 at 8:45 p.m. EST (0145 GMT Friday) from Space Launch Complex-40 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, FL.
It flew as a rideshare payload bolted to the primary payload – namely the Nusantara Satu communications satellite for Indonesia
Watch my launch video here:
It flew as a rideshare payload bolted to the primary payload – namely the Nusantara Satu communications satellite for Indonesia.
The Beresheet lunar lander is a joint endeavor funded and built by Israeli nonprofit SpaceIL and Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI). It marks Israel’s first lunar mission and also counts as being the world’s first privately funded lunar mission.
If all continues to go well lunar touchdown is scheduled for April 11 at Mare Serenitatis (Sea of Serenity) on the Moon’s northern hemisphere on the upper right side as seen from Earth.
Liftoff of the private Beresheet moon lander for Israel atop a recycled SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket took place in the evening of Feb. 21 at 8:45 p.m. EST (0145 GMT Friday) from Space Launch Complex-40 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, FL.
It flew as a rideshare payload bolted to the primary payload – namely the Nusantara Satu communications satellite for Indonesia
Watch my launch video here:
Video Caption: SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying privately funded Israeli Beresheet moon
lander and Indonesian Nusantara Satu comsat roars to life Feb. 21, 2019, 8:45 p.m. ET from Space Launch Complex-40
on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida - as seen in this video camera stationed at pad. Credit: Ken
Kremer/kenkremer.com/spaceupclose.com
“After years of
planning and preparations, Israel is finally set to land on the moon’” said
Space IL after completing the last orbit adjustment maneuvers.
“SpaceIL and IAI have been working all night on last calculations after the successful maneuver yesterday evening.”
To date only three countries have successfully landed on the Moon- the US, Russia and China and those were all government run missions.
“SpaceIL and IAI have been working all night on last calculations after the successful maneuver yesterday evening.”
To date only three countries have successfully landed on the Moon- the US, Russia and China and those were all government run missions.
Beresheet was developed at a cost of almost $100
million as the world’s first privately funded and developed moon lander.
Beresheet, which in
Hebrew means “genesis” or “in the beginning” was one of the competitors for the
now defunct Google Lunar XPrize.
The Falcon 9 launch propelled Beresheet onto the proper
trajectory to begin a series of 4 elongating long looping orbits to gradually
reach the moon.
Watch for Ken’s
continuing onsite coverage of NASA, SpaceX, ULA, Boeing, Lockheed Martin,
Northrop Grumman and more space and mission reports direct from the Kennedy Space
Center, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida and Wallops Flight Facility,
Virginia.
Stay tuned here for Ken's continuing Earth and
Planetary science and human spaceflight news: www.kenkremer.com –www.spaceupclose.com – twitter @ken_kremer
– email: ken at kenkremer.com
Dr. Kremer is a research scientist and journalist based in the
KSC area, active in outreach and interviewed regularly on TV and radio about
space topics.
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