Lunar lander carrying human remains approaches Earth: Chilling details
The Peregrine lunar lander will burn up in the Earth's atmosphere (photo: SciTechDaily)
The Peregrine lunar lander, which failed last week, has been deployed and is headed for Earth. It is predicted that on Thursday, January 18, it will enter the planet's atmosphere and completely burn up before reaching its surface, according to Live Science.
Despite the malfunction of the vehicle, the possibility of its limited maneuvering still exists. For this reason, a decision was made to purposefully destroy it to prevent the possible formation of hazardous space debris.
NASA concludes that this operation does not pose a threat to humanity.
The Peregrine project was developed by the private space company Astrobotic Technology and sent into space on January 8 using a new Vulcan Centaur rocket.
The first image taken by the Peregrine lunar module on January 8, 2024 (photo: Astrobotic Technology)
From the very beginning, it was planned that by the end of February, the device would land near the South Pole of the Moon, becoming the first commercial lander on the Earth's satellite and the first U.S. vehicle to reach the lunar surface since the Apollo 17 mission in 1972.
However, the operation did not go according to plan: six hours after the launch, operators discovered a critical fuel leak. Subsequently, the company confirmed that the lander would not be able to carry out its planned mission.
The launch of the Vulcan Centaur rocket with the Peregrine module on board (photo: Live Science)
The Peregrine carries equipment for scientific programs, human remains, including three actors from the Star Trek series, as well as 20 other types of cargo with symbolic or cultural significance.
We also wrote that the moon landing is delayed due to certain circumstances.
