Beresheet
Beresheet ('In the beginning') was developed by Israeli non-profit SpaceIL and Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), originating as a Google Lunar X Prize competitor. Launched as a rideshare payload on a Falcon 9, it successfully entered lunar orbit on April 4, 2019, making Israel the 7th nation to orbit the Moon. During terminal descent to Mare Serenitatis on April 11, an inertial measurement unit (IMU) failure triggered a main engine shutdown; telemetry was lost at ~150 meters altitude as the craft impacted the surface at high speed.
Mission Imagery & Gallery
Primary Achievement
First privately funded mission to reach lunar orbit and attempt a lunar soft landing.
Mission Objectives
- Execute low-cost private lunar orbital insertion and soft landing
- Measure local magnetic fields with SpaceIL magnetometer to study crustal magnetism
- Carry lunar time capsule and laser retroreflector array provided by NASA
Timeline Events
- 2019-02-22 — Launched from Cape Canaveral SLC-40 aboard Falcon 9 as secondary payload.
- 2019-04-04 — Executed lunar orbit insertion, making Israel the 7th nation to place a probe in lunar orbit.
- 2019-04-11 — Initiated landing descent; engine failure at ~14 km altitude led to impact in Mare Serenitatis at 19:23 UTC.
Related Missions
- Chandrayaan-2 (2019) · ISRO
- Hakuto-R Mission 1 (2023) · ispace
- IM-1 Odysseus (2024) · Intuitive Machines
Historical & Technical Sources
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