The Peregrine Lunar Lander (Illustration)
After
a period of fifty years, America is on the verge of landing on the moon.
On December 11, 1972, Apollo 17 landed in the Taurus-Littrow highlands on the moon. Now, NASA plans a non-human landing on this satellite later this year, using
the Peregrine lunar lander.
In
co-operation with the Pittsburgh-based company Astrobotic, the mission aims to deliver
twenty-four payloads to the moon. Most will be scientific experiments, but will
include commercial payloads as well as cultural messages from various people around
the planet.
Originally,
the Peregrine mission was scheduled to launch last year, but became rescheduled
due to delays caused by the pandemic. Astrobotic CEO John Thornton sees the
venture as the first step in creating a sustainable moon delivery market, being the first of many such commercial space missions.
Interestingly,
one of the payloads planned for the original launch was a capsule containing the ashes and DNA of
the famous science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke. The plan was to deposit it on the moon’s surface. The author,
fittingly remembered for classics such as the “Space Odyssey” series and “Profiles
of the Future,” is remembered for his passion for space travel. At this time, it is unclear if this plan is part of the
up-coming mission or will be postponed to a future one.
This
idea is the brainchild of a company call Celestis, based out of Houston, Texas.
It seems that there is a demand for final-resting
places on the moon. While full burials are not possible at this time, the
company has many clients interested in having small capsules containing ashes
and DNA of either themselves or their loved ones interred on the moon.
As
the company’s CEO Charles Chafer told Space.com, “our Luna Service is among the
most popular, as it affords families and friends the permanence of an
off-planet service and provides a constant reminder in the night sky of a loved
one’s final resting place.”
Amen.
Mohan Ashtakala (www.mohanauthor.com) is the author of "The Yoga Zapper," a fantasy, and "Karma Nation," a literary romance. He is published by Books We Love Inc. (www.bookswelove.com)
