UNITED STATES: Time is running out for NASA’s LunaH-Map CubeSat as attempts to fix a stuck valve in the spacecraft’s propulsion system come to a close. Launched last November as part of the Artemis 1 mission, LunaH-Map was one of 10 CubeSats launched as ride-along payloads in NASA’s moon-bound Artemis program.
LunaH-Map’s mission was to map the abundance and distribution of water ice near the moon’s south pole. However, the spacecraft failed to perform a crucial engine burn five days after liftoff and did not get into lunar orbit as planned.
Since then, mission team members have tried troubleshooting the issue, but to no avail. Craig Hardgrove of Arizona State University, the principal investigator, has warned that they will likely end operations by the end of May if they cannot ignite the propulsion system.
The delay of the Artemis 1 mission may be the root cause of the problem that afflicted LunaH-Map, as the design of the propulsion system could not withstand a launch delay longer than four or five months, which the team promptly communicated to NASA.
LunaH-Map was not the only Artemis 1 CubeSat to have issues after liftoff. Japan’s OMOTENASHI spacecraft suffered communications issues that prevented it from dropping a tiny lander on the lunar surface.
The NEA Scout, which aimed to solar-sail to a near-Earth asteroid and then study the rock up close, lost connection with ground control after the Nov. 16 launch.
Despite the issues, the mission teams of all the Artemis 1 CubeSats received commendations for their work.
Hardgrove said that it is unfair to characterise any of the issues as a failure. The agency considers Artemis 1 an overall success, sending an uncrewed Orion capsule back to lunar orbit.
NASA is now preparing to launch Artemis 2, which will send four astronauts around the moon in late 2024, followed by Artemis 3, which will touch down near the lunar south pole a year or so later.
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