Odysseus moon lander still generating power to allow data collection
(Reuters) -The Odysseus moon lander continues to generate solar power, allowing flight controllers to gather data from the south pole region, Intuitive Machines said on Wednesday.
Flight controllers are analyzing new solar charging data and using additional time to maximize tasks, the company said.
It will hold a news conference with NASA at the Johnson Space Center in Houston at 2 p.m. ET to discuss the mission.
Shares of the space exploration company were down about 1% in volatile trading. Analysts have said the drop in its share price earlier this week after the Odysseus touching down sideways was an overreaction.
The six-legged lander, the first U.S. spacecraft to land on the moon since 1972, carried six payloads for NASA and six for commercial customers, including a jacket insulating material for sportswear maker Columbia.
Canaccord Genuity analyst Austin Moeller said Intuitive Machines had installed solar panels on the top and multiple sides of the lander.
"(That will) enable it to generate electrical power and function normally on the Moon should such a tipping scenario occur," he said based on his interaction with CEO Steve Altemus and CTO Tim Crain.
The company had said on Tuesday the battery of Odysseus was in its final hours after which the vehicle would go dark.
The spacecraft reached the lunar surface last Thursday after an 11th-hour navigational glitch and white-knuckle descent that ended with it landing in a sharply tilted position that has impeded its communications and solar-charging capability.
Intuitive Machines said the next day that human error was to blame for the navigational issue.
Flight readiness teams had neglected to manually unlock a safety switch before launch, preventing subsequent
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