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Intuitive Machines

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Intuitive Machines, Inc.
Company typePublic
Nasdaq: LUNR
IndustryAerospace
Founded2013; 11 years ago (2013)
Founders
Headquarters
Houston, Texas
,
U.S.
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)
Websitewww.intuitivemachines.com

Intuitive Machines, Inc. is an American space exploration company headquartered in Houston, Texas. It was founded in 2013 by Stephen Altemus,[1] Kam Ghaffarian, and Tim Crain, to provide lunar surface access, lunar orbit delivery, and communication from lunar distance.[2] Intuitive Machines holds three NASA contracts under the space agency's Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) programme,[3] to deliver payloads to the lunar surface.[4] Among these, the company holds a contract to develop a Lunar Terrain Vehicle (LTV).[5]

The privately held Intuitive Machines, LLC,[6] became a public company after merging with a special-purpose acquisition company, Inflection Point Acquisition Corp., in February 2023. The company is listed on the Nasdaq, incorporated in Delaware.[7] On February 22, 2024, the Odysseus IM-1 spacecraft 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.[8][9][10][11] The Odysseus lander fell on its side when landing, but its instruments remained partially functional (albeit with a reduced downlink capacity),[12] so the mission was judged successful.[13]

Overview

Intuitive Machines (IM) has designed airborne drones and spacecraft, including the Universal Reentry Vehicle (URV),[14] the Nova-C lunar lander,[15] and other flight instrument systems.

Nova-C

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

In November 2018, IM was selected by NASA as one of nine companies to bid on the Commercial Lunar Payload Services program (CLPS).[16] Their lander, Nova-C, was NASA CLPS first mission of the program, focused on the exploration and use of natural resources of the Moon.[17]

On 31 May 2019, NASA announced it had awarded Intuitive Machines $77 million to build and launch their Nova-C Moon lander.[18][19][20]

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

By April 2021, the landing site had been changed to an unspecified location between Mare Serenitatis and Mare Crisium.[21]

Missions

IM-1

Main article: IM-1

Intuitive Machines announced in October 2019 that its first Nova-C lander would launch on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. The company said on 15 April 2020 that the lunar mission, designated IM-1, would launch as soon as 11 October 2021 from pad LC-39A at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.[22] IM had previously reported 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 had been pushed back three months due to impacts from a protest of the company's contract, 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.[22] As of May 2022, IM-1 was scheduled to launch on 22 December 2022,[23] but in November 2022, IM-1 was rescheduled for March 2023 earliest.

In February 2024, the company launched its first mission, with the Nova-C spending six days travelling to the moon before orbiting and descending to the surface to make the first landing by the US in more than 50 years since Apollo 17 touched down in 1972.[24][25]

The Intuitive Machines contract with NASA covered transportation and operations at the Moon for five NASA science instruments.

Following the launch of IM-1, Intuitive Machines' stock surged 35% in one trading day, rising 75% total by Friday, February 16.[26]

Intuitive Machines’ stock sank 32% after the Odysseus moon lander fell on its side on 23 February 2024.

IM-2

Main article: IM-2

IM-2 is planned to launch in January of 2025.[27]

Joint venture with KBR

In April 2023, Space Networks Solution,[28] a joint venture of Intuitive Machines and KBR was awarded a five year contract worth up to $719 million to support NASA's Joint Polar Satellite System.[29]

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.[30][31]

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.[32]

References

  1. ^ Fernholz, Tim. "NASA taps Intuitive Machines to build a lunar communications network". Fast Company. Retrieved September 24, 2024.
  2. ^ Leinfelder, Andrea (June 5, 2019). "Houston-based Intuitive Machines to be among first private U.S. Companies to land on the moon". Chron. Archived from the original on February 1, 2022. Retrieved February 1, 2022.
  3. ^ Amos, Jonathan (February 23, 2024). "Intuitive Machines: Odysseus Moon lander 'tipped over on touchdown'". BBC.
  4. ^ Potter, Sean (November 17, 2021). Fox, Karen; Handal, Josh; Ramji, Nilufar (eds.). "NASA Selects Intuitive Machines for New Lunar Science Delivery" (Press release). NASA. 21-157. Archived from the original on January 29, 2022. Retrieved February 1, 2022.{{cite press release}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  5. ^ @SpaceEquities (March 30, 2024). "EXCLUSIVE: Intuitive Machines $LUNR consortium awarded NASA LTV contract. On the..." (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  6. ^ "Certificate of Incorporation of Intuitive Machines, Inc". SEC.gov. Securities and Exchange Commission. February 10, 2023. Archived from the original on February 16, 2023. Retrieved February 16, 2023.
  7. ^ Foust, Jeff (February 13, 2023). "Intuitive Machines completes SPAC merger". SpaceNews. Archived from the original on April 24, 2024. Retrieved August 17, 2023.
  8. ^ Sheetz, Michael (February 22, 2024). "Intuitive Machines lands on the moon in historic first for a U.S. company". CNBC. Retrieved September 18, 2024.
  9. ^ Chang, Kenneth (February 22, 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 February 23, 2024. Retrieved February 23, 2024.
  10. ^ Chow, Denise (February 23, 2024). "Privately built lunar lander makes history with successful moon touchdown". NBC News. Archived from the original on February 22, 2024. Retrieved February 23, 2024.
  11. ^ Sriram, Akash; Varghese, Harshita Mary; Roulette, Joey; Randewich, Noel; Satija, Bhanvi (February 23, 2024). Chakrabarty, Saumyadeb; Kalluvila, Sriraj; Koyyur, Arun; Desai, Pooja; Oatis, Jonathan (eds.). "Intuitive Machines rockets higher after landing spacecraft on moon". Reuters. Archived from the original on February 25, 2024. Retrieved February 23, 2024.
  12. ^ Harwood, William (February 24, 2024). "Odysseus moon lander tipped over onto its side during touchdown, company says - CBS News". CBS. Retrieved September 18, 2024.
  13. ^ Davenport, Christian. "The tense final moments as Intuitive Machines pulled off a moon landing". Retrieved September 24, 2024.
  14. ^ "Universal Reentry Vehicle". Intuitive Machines. Archived from the original on December 1, 2018. Retrieved December 1, 2018.
  15. ^ Stuckey, Alex (November 30, 2018). "Houston company among 9 tapped to build moon landers". The Houston Chronicle. Archived from the original on December 1, 2018.
  16. ^ Warner, Cheryl; Cole, Steve; Knotts, Jenny, eds. (November 29, 2018). "NASA Announces New Partnerships for Commercial Lunar Payload Delivery Services" (Press release). NASA. 18-105. Archived from the original on November 25, 2020. Retrieved November 29, 2018. Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  17. ^ "Intuitive Machines Headed To The Moon In 2021". Space Mining News. November 30, 2018. Archived from the original on June 2, 2019.
  18. ^ Brinkmann, Paul. "NASA chooses three companies to send landers to the moon". UPI. Archived from the original on January 22, 2020. Retrieved June 1, 2019.
  19. ^ Sriram, Akash. "Intuitive Machines slumps as moon lander likely has 10-20 hours of battery life left". Reuters. Retrieved September 24, 2024.
  20. ^ Stuckey, Alex. "Houston based company headed to the moon in 2021". Retrieved September 24, 2024.
  21. ^ "Intuitive Machines-1 Orbital Debris Assessment Report (ODAR) Revision 1.1" (PDF). Intuitive Machines. FCC. April 22, 2021. Archived (PDF) from the original on April 24, 2021. Retrieved April 24, 2021.
  22. ^ a b Clark, Stephen (April 15, 2020). "Intuitive Machines announces moon mission's launch date, landing site". Spaceflight Now. Archived from the original on April 16, 2020. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  23. ^ "Upcoming Mission Events". NASA. Archived from the original on January 29, 2019. Retrieved May 31, 2022.
  24. ^ Sheetz, Michael (February 15, 2024). "Moon company Intuitive Machines begins first mission after SpaceX launch". CNBC. Archived from the original on February 15, 2024. Retrieved February 15, 2024.
  25. ^ Norman, Greg (February 15, 2024). "SpaceX rocket blasts off carrying Intuitive Machines' moon lander". FOXBusiness. Archived from the original on February 15, 2024. Retrieved February 15, 2024.
  26. ^ Sheetz, Michael (February 16, 2024). "Intuitive Machines stock jumps 16% after company says moon mission is in 'excellent health'". CNBC. Archived from the original on February 16, 2024. Retrieved February 16, 2024.
  27. ^ David, Leonard (September 12, 2024). "Ice-hunting Lunar Trailblazer and IM-2 nearly ready for January 2025 launch". SpaceNews. Retrieved September 12, 2024.
  28. ^ Alamalhodaei, Aria (May 11, 2023). "Intuitive Machines prepares for first lunar mission, faces challenge to NASA contract win". TechCrunch. Retrieved October 23, 2024.
  29. ^ Carreau, Mark (April 20, 2023). "NASA Picks Intuitive Machines/KBR JV For Engineering Support Contract". Aviation Week. Archived from the original on February 15, 2024. Retrieved February 15, 2024.
  30. ^ Foust, Jeff (February 13, 2023). "Intuitive Machines completes SPAC merger". SpaceNews. Archived from the original on February 23, 2024. Retrieved February 16, 2023.
  31. ^ Cooper, Naomi (February 14, 2023). "Intuitive Machines Completes SPAC Merger, Aims to Gain Foothold in Space Exploration Market". GovConWire. Archived from the original on February 16, 2023. Retrieved February 16, 2023.
  32. ^ "IM-1, Houston We Have a Podcast". NASA. February 9, 2024. Archived from the original on February 13, 2024. Retrieved February 9, 2024.
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