SpaceX - Falcon 9 - NOVA C (IM-1) - LC-39A - Kennedy Space Center - Space Affairs Livestream

SpaceX will launch with a Falcon 9, the NOVA C moon lander. The launch is scheduled for Wednesday, February 14, at 0:57 a.m. ET, 05:57 UTC, and 6:57 CET from Launch Complex 39A of the Kennedy Space Center. After stage separation, the Falcon 9 booster will make a boost back-burn and a landing attempt at Landing Zone 1 (LZ-1) at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Nova-C is a lunar lander designed by the publicly traded American company Intuitive Machines to deliver small commercial payloads to the surface of the Moon. Intuitive Machines was one of nine commercial landing service providers selected by NASA in November 2018 to submit bids for the Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program. Nova-C is one of the lunar landers that will be built and launched under that program. The first Nova-C lander is manifested on the IM-1 mission to be launched in February 2024, with a second lander on the IM-2 mission and a third one on the IM-3 mission to follow later. All three landers will launch on SpaceX’s Falcon 9 launch vehicle. The Nova-C lunar lander was designed by Intuitive Machines, inheriting technology developed by NASA’s Project Morpheus. Its pressure-fed VR900 main engine uses methane and oxygen as liquid propellants, pressurized by helium gas, to produce 4,000 N (900 lbf) thrust. The lander also includes autonomous landing and hazard detection technology. Lander propellant loading will take place at the launch pad alongside the propellant loading of the carrier rocket. For IM-1, the lander propellant will be loaded at LC-39A using the same Transporter erector that will load RP-1 and liquid oxygen onto the mission’s Falcon 9 Block 5 carrier rocket. After landing, the lander can relocate by performing a vertical takeoff, cruise, and vertical landing. Methane and oxygen could be manufactured on the Moon and Mars using In-situ resource utilization. Nova-C can provide 24/7 data coverage for its client payload and can hold a payload of 100 kg. The Nova-C lander design provides a technology platform that scales to mid and large lander classes, accommodating larger payloads. Selection Nova-C was selected in May 2019 for NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services as one of the first three landers of this program, tasked with delivering small payloads to explore and test technologies to process some of the Moon’s natural resources. NASA awarded Intuitive Machines US$77 million for building and launching Nova‑C. Payloads For the IM-1 mission, Nova‑C will carry up to five NASA-sponsored instruments. The lander will also carry payloads from other customers, including EagleCAM. The lander will operate for one lunar day, equivalent to about 14 Earth days. The planned landing site has changed several times. At one point, it was to land between Mare Serenitatis and Mare Crisium. As of February 2023, the site will be at Malapert A near the lunar south pole. DOGE-1 and EagleCAM will be deployed as secondary payloads. The DOGE-1 payload has a mass of 40 kg and was paid for with Dogecoin.