Blue Ghost Arrives in Lunar Orbit, Prepares for Landing

February 20, 2025

Firefly’s Blue Ghost lunar lander captured an Earth selfie that looks down the side of the lander and shows the top of Blue Ghost’s thrusters with Lunar Magnetotelluric Sounder (LMS) probes on both sides. (Image: Firefly Aerospace)

Firefly Aerospace's Blue Ghost Mission 1 lunar lander has entered an elliptical orbit around the Moon and captured new images as it prepares for a scheduled landing.

Blue Ghost's entry into lunar orbit came less than a month after it was launched on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. As the spacecraft transitions from Earth orbit to lunar transit and orbit, both NASA and Firefly have been providing updates with new images and mission data as it prepares for a landing that is targeted to occur on March 2, 2025.

Since launching last month, Blue Ghost has performed dozens of health tests generating 13 gigabytes of data. All 10 NASA payloads onboard are currently healthy and ready for surface operations on the Moon.

An on-orbit health check performed by NASA's Lunar Magnetotelluric Sounder (LMS) accurately detected a change in magnetic fields. This is a positive sign that LMS will be able to measure the Moon’s magnetic and electrical fields, shedding light on the Moon’s interior temperature and composition on the lunar surface.

"The Firefly team nailed our most challenging burn to date! Starting at 7:51 p.m. CST on February 13, the team completed a 4 minute, 15 second Lunar Orbit Insertion burn with Blue Ghost’s RCS thrusters and main engine to enter an elliptical orbit around the Moon. Over the next 16 days, we’ll conduct additional maneuvers to circularize our orbit and get closer to the lunar surface," the company notes in a website update.

While in lunar orbit, Firefly’s Blue Ghost lander captured an image of the Moon’s south pole on the far left. (Image: Firefly Aerospace)

Upon eventually landing in Mare Crisium, Blue Ghost will operate 10 NASA payloads for a complete lunar day (about 14 Earth days) and support several science and technology demonstrations, including lunar subsurface drilling, sample collection, X-ray imaging, and dust mitigation. Just before lunar night, Blue Ghost will capture high-definition imagery of a total eclipse from the Moon where the Earth blocks the sun. Blue Ghost will then capture the lunar sunset, providing data on how lunar regolith reacts to solar influences during lunar dusk conditions, before operating several hours into the lunar night.

“Towards the end of Blue Ghost Mission 1, we expect to capture a phenomenon documented by Eugene Cernan on Apollo 17 where he observed a horizon glow as the lunar dust levitated on the surface,” said Jason Kim, CEO of Firefly Aerospace. “As a tribute to the last Apollo Astronaut to walk on the Moon, we’re honored to have the opportunity to watch this incredible sight in high definition.”

The current Ghost Riders in the Sky mission is one of four task orders Firefly has been awarded by NASA CLPS as part of NASA’s Artemis campaign that is working to establish a long-term presence on the Moon and prepare for Mars exploration.

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