This image provided by Firefly Aerospace on Feb. 26 shows Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost lunar lander orbiting the moon. (Firefly Aerospace via AP)
A US spacecraft has successfully landed on the Moon, marking a major milestone for private space exploration. Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost Mission 1 is now the first private lander to reach the Moon without crashing or tipping over.
The lander descended autonomously onto the slopes of an ancient volcanic dome in the Moon’s northeastern near side. Firefly’s Mission Control, based near Austin, Texas, confirmed the successful touchdown from 225,000 miles (360,000 kilometres) away.
“We’re on the Moon,” a controller announced, confirming that the lander was stable. This makes Firefly only the second private company to land successfully, after Intuitive Machines achieved a similar milestone in February 2024.
“Firefly just became the first commercial company in history to achieve a fully successful Moon landing. This small step on the Moon represents a giant leap in commercial exploration,” Firefly Aerospace said in a statement on X.
NASA invested $101 million for Blue Ghost’s delivery, plus an additional $44 million for its onboard technology. The lander carries ten scientific instruments, including a vacuum to collect lunar soil samples, a drill capable of measuring temperatures 10 feet (3 metres) below the surface, and a device designed to counteract lunar dust, which caused issues during the Apollo missions.
The lander is expected to operate for two weeks before the harsh lunar night renders it inactive. However, Firefly has planned for Blue Ghost to continue functioning for several hours into the lunar night, extending data collection efforts.
During its journey, Blue Ghost sent back stunning images of both Earth and the Moon. It spent 45 days travelling through space, allowing mission controllers to conduct critical health checks on its subsystems and prepare the onboard instruments for lunar operations. While in orbit, it successfully acquired signals from the U.S. GPS and European Galileo constellations, demonstrating the potential for future lunar navigation.
On March 14, the lander is expected to capture high-definition images of a total lunar eclipse, when the Earth will completely block the Sun from the Moon’s horizon. Firefly also aims to document the lunar sunset on March 16, gathering data on how lunar dust levitates due to solar influences—a phenomenon first observed by Apollo 17 astronaut Eugene Cernan.
The Moon is set for more visitors soon. Intuitive Machines’ IM-2 mission is due to land this week, targeting a site near the lunar south pole. Meanwhile, Japanese company ispace has a lander on a slower trajectory, expected to arrive in three months.
This mission is part of NASA’s push to support commercial lunar exploration under its $2.6 billion Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) programme. It follows Intuitive Machines’ IM-1, the first private lunar landing in February 2024.