Israel, NASA, to cooperate on Beresheet2 lunar mission
The Israel Space Agency on Wednesday signed an agreement with NASA for full collaboration on the Beresheet2 lunar mission, Israel’s grand return to the moon.
The statement of intent was signed by NASA Associate Administrator Robert D. Cabana and ISA Director-General Uri Oron and will see the US space agency provide support for the Israeli lunar mission.
This builds off the previous collaboration in 2019 when NASA and the Israel Space Agency worked together on the first Beresheet mission, launched with SpaceIL. That mission technically succeeded in landing on the moon but mission control lost contact with the lander shortly before touchdown and it crashed into lunar surface.
Now, Beresheet 2 is hoping to bring Israel back to the moon and a planned launch in 2025.
The mission itself is comprised of three spacecraft: One orbiter that will stay in space and two landers that will
descend to the lunar surface.
According to SpaceIL CEO Shimon Sarid, there are two specific ways in which NASA is helping the Beresheet2 mission: Communications and technology.
NASA will provide SpaceIL and the Israel Space Agency with its advanced communications systems, which is vital in tracking the spacecraft during the critical phase of the mission.
“We need NASA equipment to better understand the situation and to transmit data,” Sarid explained.
Regarding technology, one of the Beresheet2 landers is set to land on the far side of the moon while carrying NASA scientific instruments. These will carry out another important part of the mission: radiation measurements.
“Radiation is very crucial in exploration in space, especially deep space, for the survival of equipment and astronauts,” Sarid said, stressing the importance of measuring its levels on the moon for this reason.
But NASA isn’t just giving it all for free and Israel is expected to give something in return.
“We have a variety of experimental technologies on board the two landers and the orbiter,” Sarid said. These tools will conduct different measurements and experiments, and Israel will freely share the data with NASA.
“It’s a win-win,” Sarid said. “The Beresheet project is the pride of Israel’s groundbreaking science and technology,” Israeli Science and Technology Minister Ofir Akunis said at the signing ceremony.
The Israel Space Agency-NASA deal took place as part of Israel Space Week, the 18th annual Ilan Ramon International Space Conference,taking place on the 20th anniversary of his death. The conference is held every year in memory of Ramon, Israel’s first astronaut, who died in the Columbia space shuttle disaster in 2003.