Intuitive Machines' Nova-C could be the first private lander on the moon, but another one is launching in January.

Intuitive Machines 的 Nova-C 可能是第一个登上月球的私人着陆器，但另一个着陆器将于一月份发射。

Several SpaceX launch delays have pushed a commercial moon lander's liftoff back by a month. 

SpaceX 的几次发射延迟导致商业月球着陆器的升空时间推迟了一个月。

Intuitive Machines, which had hoped to launch its robotic IM-1 mission no earlier than Jan. 12, 2024, will now wait an extra month to launch with SpaceX. The new launch window begins no earlier than mid-February, Intuitive representatives said in a release on Tuesday (Dec. 19). Once the launch window opens, it will last several days.

Intuitive Machines 原本希望在 2024 年 1 月 12 日之前启动其机器人 IM-1 任务，现在将多等一个月才能与 SpaceX 一起启动。 Intuitive 代表在周二（12 月 19 日）发布的一份新闻稿中表示，新的发布窗口不会早于 2 月中旬开始。一旦启动窗口打开，它将持续几天。

"The updated window comes after unfavorable weather conditions resulted in shifts in the SpaceX launch manifest," Intuitive officials wrote. Poor weather in Florida caused SpaceX to recently delay the launch of both a Falcon 9 rocket laden with Starlink satellites and a Falcon Heavy tasked with lofting the U.S. Space Force's mysterious X-37B space plane, which can stay in orbit for a year or more at a time.

Intuitive 官员写道：“在不利的天气条件导致 SpaceX 发射清单发生变化之后，更新了窗口期。”佛罗里达州的恶劣天气导致 SpaceX 最近推迟了载有星链卫星的猎鹰 9 号火箭和负责发射美国太空军神秘 X-37B 太空飞机的猎鹰重型火箭的发射，该飞机可以在轨道上停留一年或更长时间一次。

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IM-1 is poised to land at the south pole of the moon on what could be the first commercial mission to the surface, although that title depends on the launch timeline of the Peregrine lander built by Astrobotic Technology. Peregrine is now manifested to fly Jan. 8 on board United Launch Alliance's Vulcan Centaur rocket, the debut mission for that launcher.

IM-1 准备在月球南极着陆，这可能是首次登陆月球表面的商业任务，尽管该名称取决于 Astrobotic Technology 建造的 Peregrine 着陆器的发射时间表。目前，游隼号将于 1 月 8 日搭乘联合发射联盟的火神半人马火箭进行飞行，这是该发射器的首次任务。

Intuitive Machines emphasized that its spacecraft is ready for launch, and it is only waiting for its Falcon 9 rocket to be available and for the launch window to open. After the mission launches from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on Florida's Space Coast, the Nova-C lander will aim to touch down at the rim of Malapert A, a crater near the lunar south pole, when "specific lighting conditions" are available.

Intuitive Machines强调，其航天器已准备好发射，只等待猎鹰9号火箭可用和发射窗口打开。任务从佛罗里达州太空海岸的卡纳维拉尔角太空部队站发射后，Nova-C 着陆器的目标是在“特定照明条件”具备时，在月球南极附近的马拉珀特 A 陨石坑的边缘着陆。

Several international private ventures have attempted, but not succeeded, in landing on the moon in recent years. Tokyo-based company ispace's Hakuto-R lander had a go this past April, for example. But NASA hopes to make commercial landings a regular feature in the near future. Both IM-1 and the Peregrine mission are funded under the agency's Commercial Lunar Payload Services program, or CLPS. CLPS aims to support future crewed landings of NASA's Artemis program, which aims to establish a research base near the moon's south pole in the coming years.

近年来，一些国际私营企业曾尝试登陆月球，但没有成功。例如，总部位于东京的 ispace 公司的 Hakuto-R 着陆器在今年四月就进行了尝试。但美国宇航局希望在​​不久的将来使商业着陆成为常态。 IM-1 和游隼任务均由该机构的商业月球有效载荷服务计划（CLPS）资助。 CLPS 旨在支持 NASA 阿尔忒弥斯计划未来的载人登陆，该计划旨在未来几年在月球南极附近建立一个研究基地。

NASA hopes to put the first human mission, Artemis 3, at the south pole in 2025 or 2026. Given delays with SpaceX's Starship lander and some private spacesuits, however, the Government Accountability Office suggested that 2027 is the more realistic target. 

NASA 希望在 2025 年或 2026 年将首次载人任务 Artemis 3 送至南极。然而，鉴于 SpaceX 的 Starship 着陆器和一些私人宇航服的延误，政府问责办公室建议 2027 年是更现实的目标。

Four astronauts will circle the moon with Artemis 2 no earlier than late 2024, assuming that crew training and the development of key hardware — the Orion spacecraft and Space Launch System rocket — continue to progress on schedule. 

假设乘员训练和关键硬件（猎户座飞船和太空发射系统火箭）的开发继续按计划进行，四名宇航员将在 2024 年年底乘坐阿耳忒弥斯 2 号绕月飞行。