NASA’s Lunar Trailblazer hitched a ride on a SpaceX Falcon 9, successfully deploying into space. But soon after, the mission hit a snag — engineers discovered power system issues that led to a loss of communication.

SpaceX Falcon 9 launched Athena and Lunar Trailblazer to advance lunar water ice exploration and future missions.

On Wednesday 26 February, a thermal imaging camera built by researchers at the University of Oxford's Department of Physics will blast off to the moon as part of NASA's Lunar Trailblazer mission. This aims to map sources of water on the moon to shed light on the lunar water cycle and to guide future robotic and human missions.

The Lunar Trailblazer orbiter's launch window opens Feb 26. It's catching a ride with Intuitive Machines IM-2 mission which is landing on the moon near the south pole. Both have instruments for looking for water.

Intuitive Machines’ lunar lander will land on March 6 near the Moon’s south pole, to study and identify different forms of water on the lunar surface.

Feb. 26, NASA's Lunar Trailblazer will help resolve an enduring mystery: Where is the moon's water? After sharing a ride on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket with Intuitive Machines' IM-2 launch—part of NASA's CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative—the small satellite will take several months to arrive in lunar orbit.