Lunar lander Peregrine probably burns up in Earth’s atmosphere due to fuel leak

The Peregrine lunar lander, launched on Monday, returns to Earth due to a fuel leak. The manufacturer, Astrobotic, expects it to burn up in the atmosphere. Peregrine was scheduled to land on the moon on February 23.

The Astrobotic team writes Saturday evening in an update that the Peregrine lunar lander is on its way to Earth according to the latest measurements. This is due to a fuel leak, which means there is not enough fuel left to put the spacecraft into orbit around the moon. The leak is said to have decreased ‘significantly’ by now, but nevertheless Peregrine is said to be already on its way to Earth. A soft landing will not be possible, the American company writes. Astrobotic says it is weighing possible next steps.

Peregrine launched on January 8 aboard United Launch Alliance’s new Vulcan Centaur rocket. The Peregrine lander was built by Astrobotic on behalf of NASA. It was intended to be the first commercial craft to land on the moon. This has been tried before, including by the Japanese space company ispace, but never with success. Not long after the lander was placed in orbit, the first problems arose. On Tuesday it was announced that a fuel leak in the propulsion system, probably caused by an explosion, was the cause. It was initially expected that Peregrine would crash on the moon, but it now appears that it will return to Earth.

Launch of Peregrine aboard the Vulcan Centaur