NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Views IM-2 on Moon’s Surface

NASA · March 25

1 min read

Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)

NASA’s LRO (Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter) imaged Intuitive Machines’ IM-2 on the Moon’s surface on March 7, just under 24 hours after the spacecraft landed.

Later that day Intuitive Machines called an early end of mission for IM-2, which carried NASA technology demonstrations as part of the agency’s CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative and Artemis campaign.

Black and white image of the Moon taking from above from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter. A tiny white arrow in the center points to the location of Intuitive Machines' Athena lander.

The Intuitive Machines IM-2 Athena lander, indicated here with a white arrow, reached the surface of the Moon on March 6, 2025, near the center of Mons Mouton. NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) imaged the site at 12:54 p.m. EST on March 7.

NASA/Goddard/Arizona State University

The IM-2 mission lander is located closer to the Moon’s South Pole than any previous lunar lander.

LRO is managed by NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, for the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. Launched on June 18, 2009, LRO has collected a treasure trove of data with its seven powerful instruments, making an invaluable contribution to our knowledge about the Moon. NASA is returning to the Moon with commercial and international partners to expand human presence in space and bring back new knowledge and opportunities.

More on this story from Arizona State University’s LRO Camera website

Media Contact:
Nancy N. Jones
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.