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| Attribute | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Operator | CNSA | Astrobotic | Intuitive Machines |
| Prime contractor | China Academy of Space Technology (CAST) | Astrobotic | Intuitive Machines |
| Status | Landed | In development | Landed |
| Customer | CNSA | NASA-CLPS | NASA-CLPS |
| Launch date | 2024-05-03 | 2026-07 (NET) | 2025-02-27 |
| Landing date | 2024-06-01 | — | 2025-03-06 |
| Landing site | Apollo crater, South Pole-Aitken Basin (lunar far side) | Lunar south pole region | Mons Mouton plateau, lunar south pole (~400 m off target) |
| Payload | 1,935.3 g of lunar far-side regolith returned to Earth (2024-06-25) | Venturi Astrolab FLIP rover + mass-simulator + secondary payloads (2026-05-28) | 10 payloads delivered (2025-03-06) |
| Contract value | — | $199.5M (2020-06-11) | $62.5M (2025-02-27) |
| Outcome | First-ever sample return from the lunar far side and the South Pole-Aitken Basin. Used the Queqiao-2 relay satellite for far-side comms. Samples revealed unexpectedly cohesive grain behavior and excavated material from the Moon's mantle. | NASA cancelled VIPER July 2024 citing cost overruns; saved ~$84M vs ~$104M completion cost. Astrobotic retained the lander demonstration task. Mission slipped from late 2025 to NET July 2026. FLIP rover (Venturi Astrolab) selected as replacement manifest. | Soft-landed but tipped onto its side after altimeter failure caused the lander to strike a plateau and skid into a crater rim. Power depleted within ~24 hours; ~250 MB of data transmitted including TRIDENT drill range-of-motion demonstration. |
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Underlying dataset: GET /api/moon/landers. Methodology: /moon/methodology.