«Houston, We Have A Problem»: First US Moon Lander Mission In 50 Years Suffers 'Critical' Fuel Loss

America’s first commercial moon lander, and the first to launch from the Lower 48 in five decades, suffered a “critical” propellant loss from a fuel leak hours after the spacecraft was launched into space. The fuel leak caused the lander’s Attitude Control System (ACS) thrusters to operate beyond their expected service life cycles to prevent the lander from tumbling out of control. The goal now is to bring the lander as close to the moon as possible before it loses power. The moon landing, previously scheduled for February 23, is no longer possible due to the propulsion system failure. The lander was developed under a contract with NASA.