Firefly Aerospace has confirmed the successful conclusion of its Blue Ghost 1 lunar lander mission, which met 100% of its objectives. The mission ended with a final transmission at approximately 7:15 p.m. EDT on March 16, following 346 hours of operations — nearly 14.5 days in sunlight and an additional five hours after sunset at its Mare Crisium landing site.
The shadow cast by Blue Ghost 1 near lunar sunset. Credit: Firefly Aerospace
During its mission, Blue Ghost 1 returned over 119 gigabytes of data, including 51 gigabytes of science and technology data from 10 NASA-sponsored payloads. These payloads conducted groundbreaking experiments, including tracking GPS signals on the Moon for the first time and robotically drilling deeper into the lunar surface than ever before.
“We’re incredibly proud of the demonstrations Blue Ghost enabled, from tracking GPS signals on the Moon for the first time to drilling deeper into the lunar surface than ever before,” said Jason Kim, Firefly’s CEO, in a statement on March 17.
The payloads also included cameras to monitor the plume of material displaced by the lander’s engines during its descent. Other experiments tested an electrodynamic dust shield designed to remove regolith from spacecraft surfaces and a nitrogen gas-based system for collecting lunar soil
samples.
Blue Ghost 1 imaged an eclipse March 14 when the Earth passed in front of the sun. Credit: Firefly Aerospace
As a bonus objective, the lander observed a March 14 eclipse, capturing images of the Sun partially obscured by the Earth, creating a spectacular “ring of fire” effect as sunlight passed through the Earth’s atmosphere. After sunset, the lander continued to observe the lunar dust environment, searching for signs of dust levitation.
Firefly reported no major technical issues throughout the mission, despite intentionally reducing lander operations during the lunar midday to mitigate heat-related stress—a planned measure.
The $101.5 million mission was part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program. NASA officials praised Blue Ghost 1 as a demonstration of the program’s effectiveness, especially after recent failures by other commercial landers.
“This has been a fabulous proof that the CLPS model works,” said Brad Bailey, assistant deputy associate administrator for exploration at NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, during a town hall at the Lunar and Planetary Sciences Conference on March 10.
The success of Blue Ghost 1 was particularly significant, as it was Firefly’s first-ever lunar landing attempt. “This team makes near-impossible achievements look easy, but there is no such thing as an easy Moon landing, especially on your first try,” said Will Coogan, Blue Ghost’s chief engineer. “We battle-tested every system and simulated every possible mission scenario to get here.”
Firefly Aerospace has two more lunar missions under contract with NASA through the CLPS program. The next mission, Blue Ghost 2, is slated for launch in 2026 and will attempt a landing on the Moon’s farside, delivering payloads for lunar seismology and cosmology. It will also deploy the ESA Lunar Pathfinder communications satellite and use Firefly’s Elytra Dark spacecraft as a communications relay.
The third mission, Blue Ghost 3, scheduled for 2028, will return to the Moon’s nearside, carrying astrophysics and lunar science payloads, including a small rover.
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