The Blue Ghost lunar module has captured itself in front of Earth. The top of the spacecraft's engines and some of its scientific equipment are visible, wrapped in orange and gold insulation. (Image credit: Firefly Aerospace)
The 'ghost' spacecraft has released a series of relaxing photos taken during its recent flight into orbit, including a stunning selfie with Earth blocking out the Moon.
This “ghost” is not a ghost roaming the cosmos; it is the Blue Ghost lunar module, a brand new spacecraft headed to the Moon, brimming with scientific instruments and ready to explore our celestial neighbor.
Blue Ghost Mission 1 — also known as Ghost Riders in the Sky — is being carried out by private company Firefly Aerospace as part of NASA's Commercial Lunar Payload Services program. The Blue Ghost lander carries 10 scientific payloads designed to collect lunar samples, help future spacecraft navigate, measure electric and magnetic fields, and more. The mission aims to advance our understanding of the Moon while demonstrating new technologies.
Blue Ghost launched from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center on January 15. Over the next few weeks, the lunar module orbited the Earth several times before firing its engines to begin a four-day journey to the moon. Along the way, Blue Ghost snapped a few pictures to test its cameras, including a few “selfies” of our planet. The moon also appeared in a few images, a small white dot hovering above the swirling clouds and deep blue oceans that make Earth such a unique place in the universe.
Firefly Aerospace's Blue Ghost lunar lander captured Earth with the Moon as a distant dot in the background. The spacecraft's shiny solar panels reflect the Earth in the foreground.
The lander was also able to snap images of the Earth and Moon engaged in their usual cosmic dance, but from an angle we rarely see. From the spacecraft's perspective, the Earth slipped in front of the Moon, completely eclipsing it. As Blue Ghost turned toward the night side of our planet, the Earth transformed from a bright orb into a thin crescent, following the Moon into shadow.
Sourse: www.livescience.com
