The United States of America carried out the first landing on the moon in the last half century, operating a spacecraft called "Odyssey". This craft, designed and operated by Texas-based Intuitive Machines, successfully landed near the south pole of the Moon.
During the last leg of the descent, problems arose with the ship's autonomous navigation system, forcing engineers on the ground to work for 11 hours to resolve them. A break in radio communication after landing also caused some anxiety, but the team managed to restore communication. It took about 10 minutes to establish a connection after the estimated time of landing.
Although the signal from the device is currently quite weak, the emergency system can play a key role in solving this issue. According to experts, the automatic diagnostics system is activated 15 minutes after the supposed landing and can try to establish communication through backup antennas.
It is expected that the largest antenna of the Deep Space Network will establish communication with the device within the next 13-14 hours. The team remains optimistic about a successful re-establishment of communication and plans to wait for a communication session through this antenna before making final conclusions about the status of the device.
At the same time, the presence of a signal clearly indicates that the "Odyssey" device is in perfect condition. NASA Administrator Bill Nelson congratulated the team on the successful landing on the moon, calling these events a great achievement.
On board the Odyssey spacecraft are five NASA science instruments, including a laser retroreflector array, a stereo camera system, a navigational Doppler lidar, a low-frequency radio experiment, and an instrument for studying the lunar surface and dust.
