SSC Supports Firefly Aerospace's Blue Ghost Mission to the Moon
Humanity is returning to the Moon, but this time it's not just for a brief visit. With Swedish Space Corporation (SSC) as a key partner providing critical spacecraft tracking and communications services throughout the mission, Firefly Aerospace is preparing for a sustained lunar presence starting with the launch of Blue Ghost Mission 1.
Firefly’s Blue Ghost lunar lander was launched today, Wednesday, January 15, at 7:11 a.m. CET onboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, and is expected to land on the Moon in early March.
“As the only satellite ground station network supplier, we provide all the antennas required to track and communicate with the lander throughout the mission. We will be using our satellite ground stations in Santiago, Hawaii, and Australia, complemented by two partner stations”, explains Nick Priborsky, President Connect division, SSC.
Firefly’s first Blue Ghost mission, named Ghost Riders in the Sky, will deliver 10 science and technology instruments to the lunar surface as part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative.
“SSC has a reliable, proven, global network of commercial ground stations providing the pass coverage and communications performance required for Firefly’s Blue Ghost Mission 1,” said Will Coogan, Chief Engineer of Firefly’s Blue Ghost lunar lander. “SSC’s critical spacecraft tracking and communications services will support Blue Ghost’s navigation to the lunar surface, where we will then collect high-priority science data for transmission back to Earth.”
Firefly’s Blue Ghost will spend approximately 45 days in transit to the Moon before landing in Mare Crisium and operating payloads for a complete lunar day (~ 14 Earth days). Following payload operations, Blue Ghost will capture imagery of the lunar sunset and provide data on how lunar sand (“moon regolith”) reacts to solar influences during dusk conditions.
The payloads on Blue Ghost will help advance lunar research and conduct several first-of-its-kind demonstrations, including testing regolith sample collection, long-distance Global Navigation Satellite System capabilities, radiation-tolerant computing, and lunar dust mitigation. The data captured will also provide insights into how space weather and other cosmic forces impact Earth.
“We are proud to be a trusted partner to Firefly Aerospace, and to provide a reliable link between Earth and space for Blue Ghost Mission 1”, ends Nick Priborsky.
For more information, please contact:
Philip Ohlsson, Press & PR, +46 70 721 70 26, philip.ohlsson@sscspace.com
Multimedia:
Firefly: https://www.flickr.com/photos/fireflyspace/
SSC: https://sscspace.canto.global/v/Press
About SSC
SSC (Swedish Space Corporation) is a leading global provider of advanced space services, with more than 50 years of experience. We help space organizations, research institutes, commercial and institutional actors from all over the world to get access to space. With local presence on all continents and about 700 committed employees, we offer specialist expertise in satellite communications and satellite control services, spacecraft operations, rocket and balloon systems, launch services and flight test services, as well as engineering, operations and consultancy services for space missions. We enable successful space projects within Earth observation, telecommunications, security, meteorology, navigation and positioning, scientific research and other applications. Among our strongest assets are Esrange Space Center in northern Sweden, set out to become first to launch satellites from mainland Europe, as well as one of the world’s largest commercial ground station networks for satellite communications. For more information, visit www.sscspace.com.
