This evening, the inaugural European lunar rover is poised to land on the moon, carrying a small red house and a scoop.
Named Tenacious, the rover measures just 31.5cm in width and 54cm in length, weighing in at 5kg—similar to an empty carry-on suitcase.
As one of the lightest and smallest rovers globally, it is managed by ispace EUROPE from Luxembourg.
“This is a significant event,” remarked Dr Julien Lamamy, the CEO of ispace EUROPE, in an interview with Sky News.
“We’ve created this rover, developed it, and tested much of it—all from Luxembourg.”
“Our success illustrates that European space firms possess a startup mentality that can significantly contribute to the objectives of the European space sector.”
Tenacious will mark its place in history as the first private rover to function on the moon’s surface, expected to operate for approximately ten days until it “becomes too cold and dark,” according to Dr Lamamy.
The mission’s launch in January. Pic: ispace
Launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket in January, the rover arrives with some unique cargo.
A miniature red house, crafted by Swedish artist Mikael Genberg, is to be positioned on the lunar surface and photographed to symbolize “an artistic and epic narrative of new possibilities,” as stated by ispace.
Dr Lamamy noted that Mr Genberg has aspired to send his art to the moon for 25 years, stating, “But 25 years ago, only space agencies were venturing to the Moon.”
“This reflects our mission,” he added. “Our goal is not just to enhance scientific exploration and knowledge about the moon, but also to provide access for others with exciting projects.”
Additionally, there’s a scoop onboard designated for collecting moon dust, which will be sold to NASA for $5,000 (£3,685)—the pioneering sale of extraterrestrial resources.
The Resilience lander. Pic: ispace
The rover is aboard a lander spacecraft named Resilience, having been launched in January on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and successfully entered lunar orbit on May 6.
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Among its cargo, the lander also carries a water electrolyser, a module for food production experiments, a deep space radiation probe, and a commemorative plate.
It is scheduled to land in the Mare Frigoris region on the moon’s near side at 7:17 PM BST.
This marks ispace’s second attempt at a lunar landing, following a previous effort in 2023 that ended with the loss of communication with its lander during the mission’s final phases.
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After 100 days in space, the lander will slow down from 6,000 kilometres per hour to a walking speed just above the moon’s surface, at which point the signal was lost.
“We must conclude that the landing on the lunar surface was not completed,” stated Takeshi Hakamada, CEO of ispace, at the time.
Dr Lamamy expressed confidence that the previous issues have been resolved, stating that for the team, the moment ahead represents “one of the most significant milestones in our lives.”