First private American mission to the moon launches successfully

The first American space mission to the moon in 50 years successfully launched Monday from Cape Canaveral, Fla. It is also the first private mission to the moon. In collaboration with NASA, United Launch Alliance (ULA) is attempting to carry out this milestone.

ULA is owned by Lockheed Martin and Boeing, two of the nation's largest defense and aerospace companies. Its Vulcan Centaur rocket is carrying the Peregrine module, a lunar rover developed by Astrobotics, which will travel to various areas of the moon with the aim of collecting several samples and analyses. This data will be used for a future manned mission to the Moon, which would be the first since Apollo XI.

If everything goes according to plan, Peregrine should land in the area known as Sinus Viscositatis on Feb. 23. Peregrine is not traveling empty. Inside, the module is transporting some symbolic cargo to the Earth’s satellite. It is carrying the ashes of two science fiction writers, Gene Roddenberry and Arthur Clarke. Roddenberry was the creator of the “Star Trek” saga, and Clarke is the co-author of “2001: A Space Odyssey.” Along with this, Peregrine also has a physical bitcoin, a time capsule built by Carnegie Mellon University and the ashes of a dog.

Controversy with the Navajo Nation

Despite the clear advance this mission represents for science, the cargo carried by Peregrina sparked controversy in the United States. Carrying a payload from Earth to the moon is an important capability for the latest lunar missions. The last mission that successfully launched and headed to the lunar south pole, headed by India, also carried a payload.

However, representatives from the Navajo Indian Nation did not approve of this practice by the United Launch Alliance. For the Navajo, the moon is sacred in their traditions. According to the nation's leader, Buu Nygren, placing the human remains of the two writers on the satellite goes against Navajo tradition.

Charles M. Chafer, CEO of Celestis, the company dedicated to sending cremated remains to space as a form of commemoration, assured USA Today: "No single religion can or should dictate whether a space mission should be approved... we do not and have never let religious beliefs dictate humanity's space endeavors."

This is not the first time the Navajo Nation has opposed a similar special venture. It already did so in 1998, when NASA sent the ashes of planetary geologist Eugene M. Shoemaker to the moon.

In-flight problems

Astrobotics' Peregrine module reported some technical problems after separating from the Vulcan Centaur rocket. In an update provided by the company about 10 hours after the mission's successful liftoff, a critical loss of fuel was reported.

First, a problem was reported with the propulsion system and a loss of connection between the operators on the ground and the module in space flight. When the signal was recovered, it was learned of this major loss of fuel. The company assured that the problems are serious and that it will be necessary to assess new priorities for the mission, taking into account the new limited capabilities of the module.