Intuitive Machines' first lunar lander also ushered in safer and cheaper rocket-style propulsion.

Intuitive Machines' First of all lunar lander officially lost power Today After expenses Seven days on THE moon. THE lander do history For be THE First of all American material has reach THE lunar surface Since 1972 And THE First of all in private built spatialship has to land on THE moon. But THE lander, called Ulysses, will be recalled For another reason: It is propulsion system.

That propulsion system, which uses A combination of cryogenic liquid oxygen And liquid methane, could open new abilities In space And reduce risks future missions by other commercial suppliers.

Before Intuitive Machines' IM-1 assignment, No lander had Never used This combination of thrusters. If they her familiar, It is because they are used In high performance rocket engines, as SpaceX Raptor, Blue Origin BE-4 And Relativity The spaces Infinite time A.

But landers — And most spatialship Today — to use "space storable » Or hypergolic the thrusters, as hydrazine Or nitrogen tetroxide, which can be passively stored but are very toxic. In contrast, “cryogens” are more effective, upper energy And considerably less dangerous, but they must be actively cooled has very, very weak temperatures.

This present a few unique challenges. Because THE fuels must be guard SO cold, they can only be stored Before has lift-off For A very short Rising of time. HAS get around This issue, Intuitive Machinery And EspaceX begin fill up THE Nova-C class the lander VR900 engine (which was built by I AM) just three hours Before lift-off, When THE rocket was on THE launch buffer And THE spatialship was Already inside THE payload fairing. This East Nothing but typical.

It is SO out of the ordinary that EspaceX had has develop entirely new abilities has fuel THE lander, Bill Gerstenmaier, SpaceX Vice-president of build And flight reliability, said during A press conference on FEBRUARY 13. That included modification THE launch buffer And THE second scene of THE Falcon 9 rocket And add A adapter has to access THE payload fairing When he was Already coupled has THE vehicle.

THE two companies carried out two wet dress rehearsals Before has launch; problems with propellant loading successful In THE First of all launch attempt be pushed by A day, has FEBRUARY 15. After THE successful launch, Intuitive Machinery Also ran In A Short issue scary THE liquid oxygen food double, which took longer that anticipated. Once THE propellant was enough cooled, flight controllers with success licensed THE engine In space For THE First of all time THE following day.

Because THE business was using liquid oxygen And liquid methane, which are very effective, they were able has take A more direct path has THE moon. THE spatialship only had has transit THE Van Allen belt, A with high radiation area around THE Earth, once, which reduced THE spatialship exposure has damaging high energy particles.

Two VR900 engines will Also be used on Intuitive Machines' a lot bigger “Nova-D” spatialship, has deliver 500-750 kilograms of payload has THE moon. (THE Nova-C lander has A payload ability of 100 kilograms.)

THE Nova-C And Nova-D landers will be far Since THE last spatialship has to use cryogenic thrusters In space. Impulse The spaces high energy cut scene, Helios, will to use cryogens has deliver payloads directly has geostationary orbit, CEO To M Mueller explain In A interview Since January.

"People to have talked about TO DO big cut steps with hypergols Before, And I just think, You are talk tons of propellant And THE price And THE cost of security are just exorbitant," he said. "SO using very low cost, very high energy thrusters as liquid oxygen And liquid methane East kind of as A it's obvious."

A of THE six NASA science And research payloads that Ulysses door has THE surface Also directly leverage THE cryogenic propulsion system. THE Radio Frequency Mass Gauge statement Since THE the agency Glenn Research Center uses radio wave And antenna has measure how a lot propellant East available In THE engine tanks. He East technology that could be vital For measure spatialship fuel levels during long duration space missions, especially because "wade" can TO DO measure liquids In microgravity A challenge.

This issue East of special importance has NASA because THE the agency Artemis missions has back humans has THE lunar surface depend on spatialship that to use cryogenic thrusters — mostly SpaceX Spatialship Human Landing...