Astrobotic's Peregrine Lander successfully launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida, atop a United Launch Alliance Vulcan Centaur rocket on Monday (Dec. 8), setting the stage for a new era of private space exploration.
Peregrine was originally due to reach the moon on Feb. 23 and become the first private company to conduct a soft landing on the moon, but the lander experienced a propulsion anomaly just hours into its mission that involved a "critical loss of propellant." Astrobotic is now looking into alternative scenarios to salvage what science it can from the mission.
