Firefly Aerospace has become the second U.S. company to achieve a soft moon landing with its debut Blue Ghost lander, marking a significant milestone in the private space sector.
The uncrewed spacecraft touched down on the lunar surface at 3:35 a.m. ET near an ancient volcanic vent on Mare Crisium, a prominent basin on the moon's Earth-facing side.
The Blue Ghost lander, roughly the size of a compact car and equipped with four legs for stability, carried 10 scientific payloads as part of a two-week research mission. Flight controllers at Firefly’s headquarters in Austin, Texas, confirmed via live stream that the lander had successfully entered lunar gravity, with a company official exclaiming, “We’re on the moon.”
Launched a month and a half ago atop a SpaceX rocket from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Blue Ghost descended toward the lunar surface at a measured pace of about two miles per hour. The spacecraft’s precise descent and gentle landing underscore Firefly’s growing capabilities in the competitive arena of lunar exploration.
Firefly Aerospace now joins a select group of private companies in achieving a soft landing on the moon. Last year, Houston-based Intuitive Machines’ Odysseus lander made a lopsided touchdown, while only five nations – the former Soviet Union, the United States, China, India, and Japan – have historically accomplished such landings.
As Blue Ghost begins its research mission, Firefly’s achievement is seen as a step forward in the global race to explore and utilize the moon, opening up new opportunities for scientific discovery and commercial ventures in space.
The Federal Aviation Administration has ordered an accident investigation into SpaceX’s latest Starship test flight, which ended with the spacecraft spinning out of control and breaking apart over the Indian Ocean.
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India’s space agency, ISRO, has reported a failure in launching its EOS-9 surveillance satellite into the planned orbit after a technical problem during the rocket’s flight.
Perched at 5,100 meters (16,732 feet) in the Peruvian Andes, La Rinconada is the highest permanent human settlement on Earth.
A fire at a hospital in Hamburg has left at least three people dead and more than 35 injured, as police investigate a 72-year-old patient in connection with the blaze.
At least 21 athletes have died after their bus veered off a bridge in Kano while returning from a national sports event.
McLaren's Australian driver Oscar Piastri won the Spanish Grand Prix, marking his fifth victory of the 2025 Formula 1 season.
The death toll from a quarry collapse in Indonesia’s West Java province rose to 19, with six people still missing, officials said on Sunday.
Ukraine has outlined its formal negotiating framework ahead of planned peace talks with Russia, set to take place on June 2 in Istanbul, according to a full document seen by Reuters.
On May 28, the inauguration ceremony of Lachin International Airport was held.
A car drove into crowds of Liverpool fans celebrating the club’s Premier League title in the city centre on Monday evening, injuring dozens including 4 children. A 53-year-old man believed to be the driver was arrested at the scene.
Taxi drivers across France are protesting government plans to cut payments for driving patients to medical appointments. These cuts are part of a broader effort by Prime Minister François Bayrou to save €40 billion in the 2026 budget and reduce the country’s large deficit.
EU ministers have greenlit a massive €150 billion defense investment fund—dubbed the Security Action for Europe (SAFE)—as the bloc ramps up its military readiness in response to Russia’s aggression and growing uncertainty over U.S. security guarantees.
Brazil’s economy is expected to have regained momentum in the first quarter of 2025, driven by a surge in household spending and private investment, according to a Reuters poll of economists conducted from May 21–26.
China has taken a major step in deep space exploration with the launch of Tianwen-2, aiming to become the third nation to return samples from an asteroid.
A newly discovered object in the Milky Way is baffling astronomers with bursts of radio and X-rays every 44 minutes.
SpaceX's latest Starship launch from Texas ended in an uncontrolled spin before completing key mission goals, highlighting fresh challenges for Elon Musk’s ambitious Mars program.
Nvidia plans to roll out a lower-cost AI chip tailored for China based on its new Blackwell architecture, aiming to preserve its foothold in a shrinking but still critical market amid intensifying U.S. export restrictions.
Pakistan is positioning itself as a major tech hub, with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announcing a $700 million IT investment and urging global investors to capitalize on the country's digital growth.
A fire at a hospital in Hamburg has left at least three people dead and more than 35 injured, as police investigate a 72-year-old patient in connection with the blaze.
At least 21 athletes have died after their bus veered off a bridge in Kano while returning from a national sports event.
McLaren's Australian driver Oscar Piastri won the Spanish Grand Prix, marking his fifth victory of the 2025 Formula 1 season.
The death toll from a quarry collapse in Indonesia’s West Java province rose to 19, with six people still missing, officials said on Sunday.
Ukraine has outlined its formal negotiating framework ahead of planned peace talks with Russia, set to take place on June 2 in Istanbul, according to a full document seen by Reuters.
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