Blue Ghost: First Successful Private Lunar Landing

On March 2, 2025, Firefly Aerospace made history by becoming the first private company to successfully land on the Moon. Its Blue Ghost lander touched down safely in the Mare Crisium region, ushering in a new era for commercial lunar exploration.

Key Stages of the Lunar Landing

The Blue Ghost landing followed a precise and critical sequence. After confirming its descent orbit insertion, the lander shut down its engines and coasted for about 30 minutes, reaching an altitude of 20 km before initiating its powered descent. Then, at 2:22 AM CST (9:22 AM in France), all engines reignited for a 9-minute braking phase, allowing the lander to reduce its orbital velocity from 1,700 to 40 m/s. Blue Ghost used D’Souza guidance, a technique inspired by Apollo missions, to position itself above the target landing site and transition from a horizontal to a vertical orientation.

Final Descent and Successful Landing

At 2:32 AM CST (9:32 AM France), the main engine shut down, handing over control to the Spectre RCS thrusters for the final descent. The lander adjusted its speed to 1 m/s, continuously analyzing craters, slopes, and obstacles in real-time to ensure a safe landing. Finally, at 2:34 AM CST (9:34 AM France), confirmation of a successful landing was announced, establishing Firefly Aerospace as a pioneer in private space exploration

A Major Milestone for Lunar Exploration

This feat represents much more than a simple technological success. It illustrates the rise of private companies in space exploration and lays the foundations for future missions

Images taken from the lunar surface are posted on Firefly Aerospace’s Flickr page, providing a never-before-seen glimpse into this groundbreaking mission.

Source

The latest information regarding the Blue Ghost mission is published on the Firefly Aerospace website here