At 0105 ET, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket blasted off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, propelling an American spacecraft successfully into space and, in one week, could be the first US lander to touch down on the lunar surface since the Apollo 17 moon landing in 1972.
Called Nova-C, the spacecraft is built by Houston-based Intuitive Machines. It will attempt to land on the lunar surface next Thursday (Feb 22). This will be the fourth attempt to reach the moon after three other failed attempts, including one by a US firm, another by a Japanese company, and a third by an Israeli nonprofit.