Firefly’s Blue Ghost lands on moon’s surface, kicking off research mission

The Blue Ghost lunar lander successfully touched down on the surface of the moon early Sunday morning as it begins a two-week research mission.

The lander, built by private upstart Firefly Aerospace, landed at approximately 3:35 a.m. ET near an ancient volcanic vent in Mare Crisium, a 300-mile-wide basin in the northeast quadrant of the moon’s near side. The event makes Firefly the second private company to achieve a soft moon landing.

Blue Ghost, a four-legged lander the size of a compact car, launched atop a SpaceX rocket in January before it joined Earth’s orbit and made its way over 238,000 miles to reach the moon.