The SLIM lander and the Odysseus lander both set down on the lunar surface on their sides, but they have each been able to send data back to Earth
Both of the landers currently on the surface of the moon have ended up lying on their sides, but they still appear to be functioning surprisingly well. launched by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency touched down on the moon on 19 January, marking a milestone for Japan as its first lunar lander. US company Intuitive Machines landed its– nicknamed Odie – on the lunar surface on 22 February, becoming the first private company to successfully put a spacecraft on the moon.
Despite being on its side, Odysseus’s solar panels have been functioning since it landed. However, the antenna that is supposed to point towards Earth to transmit data isn’t oriented correctly, slowing the flow of information. Odysseus has been taking data and slowly sending images back to Earth, but its solar panels will soon be bathed in the frigid darkness of lunar night.
The two landers are both near the moon’s south pole, but they are far enough away from one another that their days begin and end at different times – as the sun goes down on Odysseus, it will still be midday where SLIM is settled.But because it was also tilted on its side when it landed, SLIM’s solar panels were not collecting any sunlight, so a few hours after its landing, its operators shut it down to preserve battery life.
As the day wanes over the SLIM lander, its operators will try once again to establish communication. If this works, it may lend some hope that the Odysseus lander could survive lunar night as well. With several other landing attempts this year failing, that hope is much needed. In all, there are
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