Blue Ghost has eyed-up all the must-see sights on the Moon. After capturing some dazzling footage of a total solar eclipse from the lunar surface, the private lander also caught imagery of a beautiful lunar sunset, marking a beautiful end to its historic mission.
ADVERTISEMENT
Blue Ghost, a spacecraft operated by Texas-based company Firefly Aerospace and funded by a NASA initiative, successfully landed on the Moon’s Mare Crisium region on March 2, 2025. During its 14-day project on the Moon, the lunar lander has been completing a variety of scientific endeavors, as well as observing numerous solar spectacles.
On March 14, Blue Ghost captured stunning imagery of a solar eclipse from the Moon, showing Earth passing in front of the Sun above the lunar horizon.
As our planet begins to block the Sun, the lander is bathed in a deep red glow, which is a result of sunlight refracting through Earth’s atmosphere. This process scatters most of the blue light, leaving only the red wavelengths to reach the Moon’s surface. The scene then descends into near-total darkness, just like it does during a total solar eclipse back home on planet Earth.
As warm as it looks, this event can be incredibly harsh on hardware. Temperatures plummet from 40°C to -170°C (104°F to -274°F) in a short span, posing a serious challenge for survival.
“Captured at our landing site in the Moon’s Mare Crisium around 3:30 am CDT, the photo shows the sun about to emerge from totality behind Earth. This marks the first time in history a commercial company was actively operating on the Moon and able to observe a total solar eclipse where the Earth blocks the sun and casts a shadow on the lunar surface,” Firefly Aerospace explained on their live update blog on March 14.
Captured by Blue Ghost, the photo shows the sun about to emerge from totality behind Earth.
Image credit: Firefly Aerospace
Two days later, on March 16, Blue Ghost witnessed a lunar sunset as this part of the Moon transitioned into lunar night. During this 14-day period of darkness, when a specific region of the Moon is not exposed to sunlight, temperatures can plunge to -133°C (-208°F) near the equator and even lower at the poles, making survival nearly impossible for most equipment.
“The sun is setting on Blue Ghost’s historic mission on the Moon. After two weeks of operations during the lunar day, the Firefly team is preparing for final operations during sunset and into the lunar night. Before we say goodnight, we hope to capture the sunset glow and dust levitation seen by the Apollo 17 astronauts as they were leaving the Moon,” Firefly Aerospace wrote on March 16.
The mission’s groundwork is over, but the hard work continues. Blue Ghost gathered a bunch of data and media that researchers will continue to muse over in the months and years ahead.
Source Link: Watch The Sky Turn Red With A Total Solar Eclipse Seen From The Moon's Surface
