Blue Ghost lifts off overnight from Kennedy Space Center

Launch summary: Scroll down to read live updates from the launch of two lunar landers on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Kennedy Space Center Pad 39A.

NASA’s unmanned payload mission to the moon lifted off promptly at 1:11 a.m. Wednesday from Pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center.

The Blue Ghost lunar lander, manufactured by Firefly Aerospace, was launched on the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.

The mission, known as “Ghost Riders in the Sky,” will carry ten science and technology payloads to the lunar surface for NASA. It will reach the moon in early March and land at a place called Mare Crisium, a 350-mile-wide crater.

When is the next start?Is there a launch today? SpaceX, Blue Origin and NASA’s upcoming rocket launch plan in Florida

It’s not just the Blue Ghost lander that went to the moon on this rocket. Included was the HAKUTO-R Mission 2 to the moon for the Japanese aerospace company ispace. The mission involves the company’s light lander called RESILIENCE, which will land on the Moon, deploy a microrover called TENACIOUS and collect regolith samples. It is the company’s second attempt after the failed attempt to send a lander to the moon in 2022.

Firefly Blue Ghost on its way to the moon

Update 2:20 a.m.: The Firefly Blue Ghost lander has been successfully placed into Earth orbit and has begun its 45-day journey to the Moon.

SpaceX Falcon 9 lands on drone ship

Update 1:19am: The Falcon 9 landed on Just Read the Instructions. This is the 398th booster recovery for SpaceX.

Lift up!

Update 1:11am: The Falcon 9 has left Pad 39A!

T-5 minutes: SpaceX launch from Florida

Update 1:06am: Five minutes until this SpaceX rocket lifts off and sends two lunar landers on their way to the moon.

Only 10 minutes until the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches today!

Update 1:01am: T-10 minutes! Head outside if you want to witness this launch! When the sky is clear, it’s hard to miss the bright rocket rising into the sky.

SpaceX Falcon 9 booster

Update 12:50 p.m.: Today’s SpaceX Falcon 9 launcher will fly for the fifth time. Previous missions include two Starlink missions, NASA’s Crew-9 and RRT-1.

The Falcon 9 will land on the Just Read the Instructions drone ship in the Atlantic. The only expected sound will be the familiar rumble of the rocket.

The refueling of the SpaceX Falcon 9 is underway

Update 12:40 p.m: Launch is scheduled for 1:11 a.m. EST. Here’s a behind-the-scenes look at SpaceX’s countdown timeline. T-minus:

38 minutes: SpaceX launch director confirms “launch” for fuel load.
35 minutes: Loading of the first stage with rocket kerosene and liquid oxygen begins.
16 minutes: Loading with liquid oxygen of the second stage begins.
7 minutes: Falcon 9 begins engine cooling before launch.
1 minute: The command flight computer begins final checks before takeoff; Pressurization of the fuel tank to flight pressure begins.
45 seconds: SpaceX launch director confirms launch is possible.
3 seconds: The engine control commands the start of the engine ignition sequence.
0 seconds: Lift up.

Blue Ghost launch: NASA livestream before SpaceX launch from Florida

Update 12:30 p.m.: NASA’s official reporting of this mission has begun. The video is posted above, below the countdown clock.

SpaceX launch preparations are underway in Brevard

Update 12:21 a.m.: Brevard County Emergency Management officials have activated the agency’s launch support team ahead of SpaceX’s upcoming Falcon 9 launch.

Launch of Firefly Blue Ghost: Music for the Way to the Moon

Update 12:15 a.m.: For those who use Spotify, Firefly has created a playlist for this mission.

“Moonhouse” on board SpaceX takes off from Kennedy Space Center

Update 12:05 a.m.: There is also a work of art on board the RESILIENCE – a small “moon house” by the artist Mikael Genberg.

Firefly and ispace landers: SpaceX launch from Florida

Update 11:55 p.m: This Falcon 9 rocket carries not one, but two lunar landers!

Blue Ghost sits on a canister with ispace’s RESILLIENCE. Blue Ghost is used first, followed by RESILLIENCE.

The lander, known as RESILIENCE, is part of HAKUTO-R Mission 2 for Japanese aerospace company ispace. It will land on the moon within 4-5 months. The lander will deploy a microrover called TENACIOUS and collect regolith samples. It is the company’s second attempt after a failed attempt in 2022.

Blue Ghost Lander – Firefly’s partnership with NASA

Update 11:45 p.m.: What exactly does this Blue Ghost mission to the moon launch?

In 2021, Firefly received a mission contract from NASA that included the Blue Ghost lander carrying 10 payloads to the Moon. Firefly was chosen based on payload capacity.

“What NASA is doing is they are contracting for manifest capacity in space, not specifically for the lander,” Scholtes told FLORIDA TODAY.

This is all part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS), an initiative aimed at using private landers to carry scientific payloads to the moon. The science and technology payloads will improve NASA’s understanding of the Moon, help design future spacecraft and even increase the safety of future astronauts.

Firefly Blue Ghost lander: SpaceX launch from Florida

Update 11:35 p.m: This is known as Ghost Rides in the Sky. Kevin Scholtes, Firefly’s future system architect, told FLORIDA TODAY that under this mission name they are trying to create an image of a highway leading to the moon.

The Firefly Aerospace lander is named Blue Ghost after a rare species of firefly. It fit the company name perfectly. Blue Ghost’s mission is known as Ghost Riders in the Sky. “The name ‘Ghost Riders in the Sky’ really helped with our ‘Blue Ghost’ theme,” said Ray Allensworth, Firefly’s starship program director.

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Blue Ghost lifts off overnight from Kennedy Space Center

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