Jump to content

Intuitive Machines: Difference between revisions

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous editNext edit →
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
add => <ref name="NYT-20240222">{{cite news |last=Chang |first=Kenneth |title=A U.S.-Built Spacecraft Lands on the Moon for the First Time Since 1972 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/22/science/intuitive-machines-lander-history.html |date=22 February 2024 |work=The New York Times |url-status=live |archiveurl=https://archive.ph/UqpDW |archivedate=22 February 2024 |accessdate=23 February 2024 }}</ref>
m Grammar
Line 50: Line 50:


==Joint venture with KBR==
==Joint venture with KBR==
In April 2023 a joint venture of Intuitive Machines and [[KBR (company)|KBR]] was awarded a contract worth up to $719 million to support NASA's [[Joint Polar Satellite System]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://aviationweek.com/defense-space/space/nasa-picks-intuitive-machineskbr-jv-engineering-support-contract |title=NASA Picks Intuitive Machines/KBR JV For Engineering Support Contract |first=Mark |last=Carreau |date=20 April 2023 |publisher=Aviation Week}}</ref>
In April 2023, a joint venture of Intuitive Machines and [[KBR (company)|KBR]] was awarded a contract worth up to $719 million to support NASA's [[Joint Polar Satellite System]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://aviationweek.com/defense-space/space/nasa-picks-intuitive-machineskbr-jv-engineering-support-contract |title=NASA Picks Intuitive Machines/KBR JV For Engineering Support Contract |first=Mark |last=Carreau |date=20 April 2023 |publisher=Aviation Week}}</ref>
==SPAC merger==
==SPAC merger==
In September 2022 Intuitive Machines announced that it would merge into [[special-purpose acquisition company]] (SPAC) Inflection Point Acquisition Corp. (IPAX) and incorporate as a publicly held company. The transaction was approved by IPAX's shareholders on February 8, 2023 and the business combination was completed six days later.
In September 2022, Intuitive Machines announced that it would merge into [[special-purpose acquisition company]] (SPAC) Inflection Point Acquisition Corp. (IPAX) and incorporate as a publicly held company. The transaction was approved by IPAX's shareholders on February 8, 2023 and the business combination was completed six days later.


The stock of the newly named Intuitive Machines, Inc., began trading on the [[Nasdaq]] exchange on 14 February 2023.<ref name="SN">{{cite news |last1=Foust |first1=Jeff |title=Intuitive Machines completes SPAC merger |url=https://spacenews.com/intuitive-machines-completes-spac-merger/ |access-date=16 February 2023 |work=SpaceNews |date=13 February 2023}}</ref><ref name="GCW">{{cite news |last1=Cooper |first1=Naomi |title=Intuitive Machines Completes SPAC Merger, Aims to Gain Foothold in Space Exploration Market |url=https://www.govconwire.com/2023/02/intuitive-machines-completes-merger-with-inflection-point-acquisition-corp/ |access-date=16 February 2023 |work=GovConWire |date=14 February 2023}}</ref>
The stock of the newly named Intuitive Machines, Inc., began trading on the [[Nasdaq]] exchange on 14 February 2023.<ref name="SN">{{cite news |last1=Foust |first1=Jeff |title=Intuitive Machines completes SPAC merger |url=https://spacenews.com/intuitive-machines-completes-spac-merger/ |access-date=16 February 2023 |work=SpaceNews |date=13 February 2023}}</ref><ref name="GCW">{{cite news |last1=Cooper |first1=Naomi |title=Intuitive Machines Completes SPAC Merger, Aims to Gain Foothold in Space Exploration Market |url=https://www.govconwire.com/2023/02/intuitive-machines-completes-merger-with-inflection-point-acquisition-corp/ |access-date=16 February 2023 |work=GovConWire |date=14 February 2023}}</ref>

Revision as of 14:17, 23 February 2024

Intuitive Machines, Inc.
Company typePublic
Nasdaq: LUNR
IndustryAerospace
Founded2013; 11 years ago (2013)
Founders
Headquarters
Houston, Texas
,
United States
Key people
Steve Altemus (President and CEO)
ProductsLunar lander Mission Control Center Ground stations additive manufacturing
Number of employees
250+ (As of 27 October 2023) (135-150, in 2022)
Websiteintuitivemachines.com

Intuitive Machines, Inc. is an American space exploration company headquartered in Houston, Texas. It was founded in 2013 by Stephen Altemus, Kam Ghaffarian, and Tim Crain.

The company has begun a lunar program to provide lunar surface access, lunar orbit delivery, and communications at lunar distance.[1] Intuitive Machines holds three NASA contracts, under the space agency's Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative, to deliver payloads to the lunar surface.[2]

The formerly privately-held Intuitive Machines, LLC[3] became a public company after completing a merger with a special-purpose acquisition company, Inflection Point Acquisition Corp., in February 2023. The company is listed on the Nasdaq and incorporated in Delaware.[4]

On February 22, 2024, the Odysseus lander of Intuitive Machines' IM-1 spacecraft successfully landed on the Moon. It was the first privately built craft to land on the Moon, and the first American spacecraft to do so since 1972.[5][6]

Overview

Intuitive Machines has designed some airborne drones and spacecraft, including the Universal Reentry Vehicle (URV),[7] the Nova-C lunar lander,[8] and other flight instrument systems.

Nova-C

Main article: Intuitive Machines Nova-C
Intuitive Machines’ Nova-C lunar lander.

In November 2018, it was selected by NASA as one of the 9 companies granted the right to bid on the Commercial Lunar Payload Services program (CLPS).[9] Their lander, Nova-C, will be proposed to NASA's CLPS as the first lander of this program, that is focused on the exploration and use of natural resources of the Moon.[10]

On 31 May 2019, NASA announced it had awarded Intuitive Machines $77 million to build and launch their Nova-C Moon lander.[11]

On 13 April 2020, Intuitive Machines, under contract to carry NASA science instruments to the Moon on a privately developed robotic spacecraft, said that its first commercial lunar mission would target landing near a deep, narrow valley named Vallis Schröteri.

By April 2021, however, the landing site had been changed to an unspecified location between Mare Serenitatis and Mare Crisium.[12] Intuitive Machines announced in October 2019 that its first Nova-C lander would launch on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. The company said on 13 April 2020 that its first lunar mission, designated IM-1, was scheduled for launch as soon as 11 October 2021, on a Falcon 9 rocket from pad LC-39A at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.[13] As of May 2022, IM-1 was scheduled to launch on 22 December 2022,[14] but in November 2022, IM-1 was scheduled for March 2023 earliest. But then it came in February 2024, the company began its first mission, where the Nova-C would spend roughly eight days travelling to the moon before lowering itself to the surface, attempting to make the first landing in more than 50 years after the Apollo 17 mission touched down in 1972. It launched from Florida using SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket.[15][16]

The Intuitive Machines contract with NASA is valued at $77 million, covering transportation and operations at the Moon for five NASA science instruments. Intuitive Machines previously said the first Nova-C lander was scheduled for launch in July 2021. Josh Marshall, a company spokesperson, said on 15 April 2020, that the mission was pushed back three months due to impacts from a protest to the company's contract award by Deep Space Systems. Deep Space Systems also bid for the contracts that were ultimately won by Intuitive Machines and Astrobotic Technology. After a review, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) upheld NASA's selection of Intuitive Machines and Astrobotic Technology, allowing work on the CLPS missions to proceed.[13]

Following the launch of the IM-1 mission, Intuitive Machines' stock surged 35% in one trading day coming to a 75% total increase by Friday, February 16.[17]

Joint venture with KBR

In April 2023, a joint venture of Intuitive Machines and KBR was awarded a contract worth up to $719 million to support NASA's Joint Polar Satellite System.[18]

SPAC merger

In September 2022, Intuitive Machines announced that it would merge into special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC) Inflection Point Acquisition Corp. (IPAX) and incorporate as a publicly held company. The transaction was approved by IPAX's shareholders on February 8, 2023 and the business combination was completed six days later.

The stock of the newly named Intuitive Machines, Inc., began trading on the Nasdaq exchange on 14 February 2023.[19][20]

Project Morpheus heritage and evolution

Main article: Project Morpheus

Project Morpheus was a NASA project that in 2010 began to develop a landing test vehicle similar to the IM Nova-C. Tim Crain had worked on the project and later became the CTO of Intuitive Machines. In an interview with NASA recorded in October 2023, Crain mentioned the possible development of a Nova-D lander.[21]

References

  1. ^ "Houston-based Intuitive Machines to be among first private U.S. Companies to land on the moon". 5 June 2019.
  2. ^ Potter, Sean (2021-11-17). "NASA Selects Intuitive Machines for New Lunar Science Delivery". NASA. Retrieved 2022-02-01.
  3. ^ "Certificate of Incorporation of Intuitive Machines, Inc". SEC.gov. Securities and Exchange Commission. 10 February 2023. Retrieved 16 February 2023.
  4. ^ "Intuitive Machines completes SPAC merger". Space News. Retrieved 2023-08-17.
  5. ^ Chang, Kenneth (22 February 2024). "A U.S.-Built Spacecraft Lands on the Moon for the First Time Since 1972". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 22 February 2024. Retrieved 23 February 2024.
  6. ^ Chow, Denise (23 February 2024). "Privately built lunar lander makes history with successful moon touchdown". NBC News. Retrieved 23 February 2024.
  7. ^ Universal Reentry Vehicle. Intuitive Machines. Accessed on 1 December 2018.
  8. ^ Houston company among 9 tapped to build moon landers Archived 2018-12-01 at the Wayback Machine. Alex Stuckey, The Houston Chronicle. 30 November 2018.
  9. ^ "NASA Announces New Partnerships for Commercial Lunar Payload Delivery Services". NASA.GOV. NASA. 29 November 2018. Retrieved November 29, 2018. Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  10. ^ Intuitive Machines Headed To The Moon In 2021 Archived 2019-06-02 at the Wayback Machine. Space Mining News 30 November 2018.
  11. ^ "NASA chooses three companies to send landers to the moon". UPI. Retrieved 2019-06-01.
  12. ^ "Intuitive Machines-1 Orbital Debris Assessment Report (ODAR) Revision 1.1" (PDF). Intuitive Machines. FCC. 22 April 2021. Retrieved 24 April 2021.
  13. ^ a b Clark, Stephen (15 April 2020). "Intuitive Machines announces moon mission's launch date, landing site". Spaceflight Now. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
  14. ^ "Upcoming Mission Events". NASA. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
  15. ^ Sheetz, Michael (2024-02-15). "Moon company Intuitive Machines begins first mission after SpaceX launch". CNBC. Retrieved 2024-02-15.
  16. ^ Norman, Greg (2024-02-15). "SpaceX rocket blasts off carrying Intuitive Machines' moon lander". FOXBusiness. Retrieved 2024-02-15.
  17. ^ Sheetz, Michael. "Intuitive Machines stock jumps 16% after company says moon mission is in 'excellent health'". CNBC. Retrieved 16 February 2024.
  18. ^ Carreau, Mark (20 April 2023). "NASA Picks Intuitive Machines/KBR JV For Engineering Support Contract". Aviation Week.
  19. ^ Foust, Jeff (13 February 2023). "Intuitive Machines completes SPAC merger". SpaceNews. Retrieved 16 February 2023.
  20. ^ Cooper, Naomi (14 February 2023). "Intuitive Machines Completes SPAC Merger, Aims to Gain Foothold in Space Exploration Market". GovConWire. Retrieved 16 February 2023.
  21. ^ "IM-1, Houston We Have a Podcast". NASA. 9 Feb 2024.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=Intuitive_Machines&oldid=1209771957"