The American company Intuitive Machines has announced that during the upcoming exploration of the Moon, it will rely not on third-party communication satellites, but on a system developed by its own team. It is expected that the five spacecraft that will comprise it will be launched as additional payloads for landing missions.
Satellite communications for the Moon
The best way to establish communication somewhere is to place a transmitter in orbit. And the Moon is no exception. That is why numerous plans by various private and public organizations for its development necessarily include a section on satellites.
The American company Intuitive Machines, which has already carried out two launches of automatic landing vehicles to the Moon, was no exception. On August 7, during a telephone conversation about the company’s financial situation, representatives of the company stated that they would build their own satellite communications system.
Intuitive Machines actually received orders from NASA to create such a system back in September 2024. Previously, it was believed that the work on creating the actual spacecraft would be transferred to a subcontractor, York Space Systems.
However, it later turned out that neither they nor any other potential contenders for this role had engines capable of maneuvering the spacecraft in orbit. Therefore, they decided to develop them independently, creating a reliable vertically integrated scheme that would allow them to control all stages and prevent delays.
Satellite launch
In total, there are plans to launch five satellites, but this will not be done all at once, but gradually. Each vehicle will expand the capabilities of the system. At the same time, it is planned to achieve a significant reduction in cost due to the fact that these repeaters will be launched as an additional load on the landing missions.
The module for the closest one is expected to be ready as early as May next year. However, the satellite will be ready around the second half of 2026. Intuitive Machines sees a way out of this situation in postponing the mission, but still launching the first element of the system with it.
Acquisition of KinetX
On August 6, Intuitive Machines announced the acquisition of KinetX, an Arizona-based company specializing in deep space navigation and mission development. Intuitive Machines will pay $30 million for the acquisition of KinetX, and the sale is expected to be completed by the end of the year. KinetX generated revenue of $9.8 million in 2024.
KinetX, according to company management, “provides exactly the type of real-time analysis and decision-making software that our future network will depend on.” KinetX has worked on various NASA missions, from Mercury to Pluto, and has also supported the IM-1 and IM-2 landing module missions.
According to spacenews.com
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