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@AkaSci@fosstodon.orgLooks like the Intuitive Machines IM-1 lander tipped over and ended up in a sideways orientation after landing, similar to the JAXA SLIM lander few weeks ago 
Vertical velocity was a bit high at 6 mph instead of 1, lateral velocity was 2 mph instead of zero. One of the legs is thought to have snagged a rock and caused the lander to tip over.
Solar panels are generating power, the lander is communicating, although the signal is weak.
No pictures yet.
News conf. at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZWEwR8fscFY
1/n
More on the Intuitive Machines IM-1 mission from the news conf. - the Laser range finder did not work because someone failed to unlatch the safety latch before launch. 
Hence, they switched to using the NASA LIDAR instrument instead.
Luckily, they found the problem before the landing sequence and they were able to work out the details of using the NASA LIDAR for landing literally in a few hours.
Need better checklists?
2/n
Perhaps, there is something to be said about making landers short and stubby instead of tall with skinny legs?
There has to be sufficient margin for imperfect landings.
3/n
Dr. Phil Metzger has a simple and clear explanation for why things tend to tip over on the moon -
"When a lander is tipping, inertial forces push it over, while gravity pulls its feet back down flat. On the Moon, gravity is reduced by a factor of 6, but inertial forces are not. *Everything is 6 times tippier on the Moon.*
"
Also, having a low center of gravity and a large base helps gravity win over inertial forces.
These are well-known principles. So why the tall slim designs of late?
4/n
Here are some graphics of proposed lunar landers that are part of the NASA Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative and 4 pics of landers (last row) that have successfully landed on the moon.
You be the judge of the probability of tipping over for these landers.
https://www.nasa.gov/commercial-lunar-payload-services/clps-providers/
#Space
5/n
Perhaps the width of the IM-1 and other landers is constrained by the design of the Falcon 9 and similar modern rockets, which can carry payloads up to a width of ~4.6m. IM-1's legs are 4.6m wide.
OTOH, Apollo used folding legs, which were 9.5m wide when deployed but only 6m when stowed. Also, the mighty Saturn V rocket could accommodate wider payloads.
@INCO
https://apollo11space.com/nasas-apollo-11-lunar-module-basic-facts/
6/n
The Intuitive Machines IM-1 Odysseus lander has been spotted and located by NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO)!
The 1st image below was captured by LRO on Feb. 24, 2024 from an altitude of 90 km.
Lander location = 80.13° S, 1.44° E, 2,579 m elevation.
The 2nd and 3rd images are from the LROC site/database.
The local terrain is sloped at 12°, which can be seen in the 3rd 3D image of the area.
https://www.nasa.gov/missions/lro/nasas-lro-images-intuitive-machines-odysseus-lander/
https://quickmap.lroc.asu.edu/?camera=295115.152%2C6404.893%2C-1715889.873%2C0.315%2C-0.273%2C6.283%2C1741095.067%2C60.000&id=lroc&showGraticule=true&showTerrain=true&queryOpts=N4XyA&trailType=0&layers=NrBsFYBoAZIRnpEBmZcAsjYIHYFcAbAyAbwF8BdC0ypcOKbRFOOZRBaAOnXfyJpVBFIA&proj=22
#Space
7/n
Update from Intuitive Machines:
The fish-eye image below was posted today. It was taken by Odysseus ~35 seconds after pitching over. The camera is on the starboard aft-side of the lander.
Also - "Based on Earth and Moon positioning, we believe flight controllers will continue to communicate with Odysseus until Tuesday morning."
Do they mean Tuesday, Mar. 5, since the Sun will set at the site on Mar 3 or is it tomorrow because of terrain and orientation?
https://7c27f7d6-4a0b-4269-aee9-80e85c3db26a.usrfiles.com/ugd/7c27f7_357496b3ba404948ba24ad63081b5d23.pdf
#Space
8/n
Minor update from the Intuitive Machines IM-1 team -
- Odysseus has been sending science data and imagery.
- Battery life is estimated at 10-20 hours, confirming that terrain and solar panel orientation are not favorable.
- They posted another pic taken just before touchdown.
- No mention of EagleCam status
- Few more celebratory words 
Richard Stephenson of DSN Canberra reported data download from the NASA LND1 instrument.
Here is some info. on the comm link with the Intuitive Machines lander, which is regularly monitored by the good folks at AMSAT-DL.
The Rx signal from Odysseus was stronger last night than before. It is believed to be caused by the declining Sun and falling lunar ground temperatures, which reduces interfering comm noise. Hence the Signal-to-Noise Ratio SNR was higher.
Would be nice if IM could share such info.
News conf. (post-mortem) by NASA and IM tomorrow at 2 p.m. ET.
10/n
This article from Ars Technica, based on interviews with IM CEO Steve Altemus paints a very different picture that what has been said before.
The NASA LIDAR did not get used for landing. The flight computer onboard Odysseus was unable to process its data in real time. There were no altitude readings after 15 km altitude. Optical navigation cameras were used. Close to landing, the nav system altitude estimate was off by 100 m!
Pic of snapped landing leg tomorrow.
The above info is not available in any of the regular info channels used by Intuitive Machines.
Presumably, they will talk about it in tomorrow's press conference.
Strange how they are handling news releases and disseminating info in bits and pieces about Odysseus and the overall mission, through writers willing to post glowing reviews.
12/n
@AkaSci We should make them like dinner plates.
@AkaSci presumably the problem is getting it up there without needing an enormous rocket like Apollo did.
@AkaSci also it’s as if nobody at these private space exploration companies have spent hours playing Kerbal Space Program 
#kerbalspaceprogram
@AkaSci Sounds intuitive… oh, wait…
@AkaSci this bodes well for the human landing plans
https://www.americaspace.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/HLS_11-02-23_1-1122x1070.jpeg
@pearofdoom@cloudisland.nz @AkaSci@fosstodon.org HLS is the silliest design for a lunar lander. WAYY too much, definitely overkill. And how do they expect it to not fall over on a 10 degree slope?? (requirement)
King of NYNEX 
@AkaSci Ah I see the problem now. There is a texas flag on it. Guaranteed to fail.
@AkaSci well, even Apollo would have been in dire problems at these landing conditions.
It simply landed too fast and with significant lateral component. And remember, its ⅙ gravity there, that means ⅙ of the force countering the torque by the lateral motion. Its easier to tip things on the moon, not harder. They just fall slower.
@AkaSci
I was wondering if this could be driven by the fairing diameter of the Falcon 9, but apart from the landing legs there seems to be some room left to widen the design.
So if they didn't design the spacecraft with microlaunchers in mind this is probably not the reason.
@AkaSci Haven't we seen proposals for a full-sized SpaceX Starship as a lander? I'd imagine once that starts to tip over there's not much that'll stop it.
@boltondown
I assume that's why they stuffed it with thrusters at the top (but I still bet on it that it will top over)
@AkaSci
@AkaSci The SpaceX design is so shockingly stupid back to front. Their dumb crane and their dumb "tipsy tower" design should have tipped off NASA that the lunatics are now running the asylum at that company.
@AkaSci Problem is that launcher fairings favour tall, but the moon needs squat.
@AkaSci
So a flying saucer ...
(Alternatively, perhaps a means of self-righting is needed. Mass though)
They fucked up. But it’s a private corporation and they can’t say they fucked up (well, they COULD say they fucked up but the establishment would get offended) so instead they lie, with typical tech corporate spin and happy PR soundbites and it’s all just cringeworthy and dumb. Corporations going out into space to enshittify space. Wonderful.
@AkaSci of all the designs, SpaceX seems to be the tippiest... If they ever can get it into orbit and on the way to the moon
@AkaSci "disruption"
And this is why I find the Starship lander to be so sketchy.
@TMEubanks
They must be claiming that they can land Falcon boosters on earth (which are empty shells with little fuel left). How much more difficult can it be to land tall skinny two-way spaceships with equipment, fuel and humans on the moon? Our engineers will figure it all out - after they fail a few times 
@AkaSci Note that abort to orbit will be viewed as a mission failure.
@AkaSci I love that even in picture of spacecraft on the moon one can't escape advertising.
@AkaSci checklists: unsung heroes of the modern world 
Moon: Gravity is tricky.
@AkaSci
looks like someone needed more practice
@AkaSci First computer game I ever played was Lunar Lander in BASIC on a DEC10/teletype in 1973. Maybe they should have run that?
@adrianco
I remember playing a text version on an IBM 327x Terminal at my fathers office at IBM. That was in the late 70s.
Here is a great site about Lunar Lander games https://technologizer.com/2009/07/19/lunar-lander/
@AkaSci