Genesis / Blue Ghost
Company Name: Firefly Aerospace, USA
Potentially available for future missions
Planned Missions: Blue Ghost
First Mission Launch: 2024
Payload Delivery Locations: First mission planned to land at Mare Crisium, 17°N and 59.1°E
Payload capacity - To Surface: 144 kg
Payload bay (size):
10 kg payload - 38 X 13 X 23 cm (Below top deck, Above bottom deck)
30 kg payload - 115 X 31 X 35 cm (Above bottom deck)
30 kg payload - 69 X 45 X 50 cm (Below bottom deck)
50 kg payload - 69 X 45 X 65 cm (Below bottom deck)
Power distribution (for payload): 38W (per payload, average)
196W (per payload, peak)
450W (per lander, average)
650W (per lander, peak)
Communications available: The Lander provides wired communications for the payload. Potentially, Wireless communications between mobile payloads and the lander might be available.
Expected working duration: Up to 14 Earth days
First Mission Ship manifest:
1) The Lunar Instrumentation for Subsurface Thermal Exploration with Rapidity (LISTER), is designed to measure heat flow from the interior of the Moon The probe will attempt to drill 7 to 10 feet (2 to 3 meters) into the lunar regolith to investigate the Moon's thermal properties at different depths
2) The Lunar PlanetVac (LPV), is designed to acquire lunar regolith from the surface and transfer it to other instruments that would analyze the material or put it in a container that another spacecraft could return to Earth
3) The Lunar Environment Heliospheric X-ray Imager (LEXI), will capture images of the interaction of Earth's magnetosphere with the solar wind
4) The Reconfigurable, Radiation Tolerant Computer System (RadPC), aims to demonstrate a radiation-tolerant computing technology. This investigation will also characterize the radiation effects on the lunar surface
5) The Lunar Magnetotelluric Sounder (LMS), is designed to characterize the structure and composition of the Moon’s mantle by studying electric and magnetic fields
6) The Regolith Adherence Characterization (RAC), will determine how lunar regolith sticks to a range of materials exposed to the Moon's environment during landing and lander operations
7) The Next Generation Lunar Retroreflectors (NGLR), will serve as a target for lasers on Earth to precisely measure the distance between Earth and the Moon
8) Stereo CAmeras for Lunar Plume Surface Studies (SCALPSS 1.1), will capture video and still images of the area under the lander from when the engine plume first disturbs the lunar surface through engine shutdown. Understanding the physics of rocket exhaust on the regolith, and the displacement of dust, gravel, and rocks is critical to understanding how to best avoid kicking up surface materials during the terminal phase of flight/landing on the Moon and other celestial bodies
9) The Lunar GNSS Receiver Experiment (LuGRE), is based on GPS and LuGRE will continue to extend the reach of GPS signals and, if successful, be the first to discern GPS signals at lunar distances
First Mission Launch vehicle: SpaceX Falcon 9