NASA Spots Firefly's 'Blue Ghost' Moon Landing!

03/05/2025 Space Exploration

Guess what? NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) just snapped a picture of Firefly Aerospace's Blue Ghost lander chilling on the Moon! Talk about a cosmic photo op. It's like trying to photograph a ghost... but this one's real, and packed with technology!

Blue Ghost touched down in Mare Crisium (the "Sea of Crises") after a 45-day trip. This area is a crater created a long time ago by an asteroid.

Spotting the Ghost: A Pixel Hunt

Now, don't expect a crystal-clear, zoomed-in shot. LRO was about 109 miles away when it took the picture on March 2, 2025. The Blue Ghost is literally a single pixel in the image – a tiny white speck with a shadow. Look closely in the middle of the box, and you might just spot it! You can also see the base of Mons Latreille, a lunar mountain, in the lower left corner of the image.

Mission: Ghost Riders in the Sky

This mission, playfully named "Ghost Riders in the Sky," is all about testing out 10 NASA Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) instruments. Firefly's website is the place to be for all the mission updates.

What's Blue Ghost Up To?

Since landing, Blue Ghost has been busy deploying its instruments, grabbing samples of Moon rock (regolith), and snapping its own photos. For two weeks (a lunar day), it will be analyzing the lunar surface, gathering data that will help scientists learn more about the Moon and pave the way for future human missions.

It's awesome to see private companies like Firefly contributing to lunar exploration. The data collected by Blue Ghost will be super valuable as we plan for a more sustained presence on the Moon.