On February 22, Israel marked history with the launch of the Beresheet spacecraft to the moon taking off from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.
In Israel, the famed countdown was recited at Israel Aerospace Industries’ control center in Yehud in the presence of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and hundreds of engineers accompanied with their families to watch the live feed of the launch.
“This launch for us, the people who worked on the development and building of the spacecraft, is like a birth after a long pregnancy,” said Ehud Hayun, a space systems engineer at Israel Aerospace Industries.
The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket dreamed up by the nonprofit organization, SpaceIL massively shared on social media as the smallest spacecraft ever sent to the moon, led to the first nongovernmental mission to the moon.
Tens of thousands of people watched the liftoff of the engine live on Facebook and YouTube, even though the launching happened during the night in Israel (3:45 am).
Israeli locals were proud to celebrate and watch the big event as Israel would be the fourth country, after the US, China and Russia to land a vehicle on the moon.
As a gesture to leave a relic for future generations, the space team placed in the time capsule, digital files of drawings made by Israeli children, Israeli music, work of Israeli art and literatures, photos of Israeli landscapes, a nano bible and Israeli national symbols. Inscribed on the craft, the words “Am Israel Chai” (the nation of Israel lives)
Israel’s space exploration to reach the moon debuted in 2003 when the country’s first astronaut, Ilan Ramon joined the Space Shuttle Columbia. He unfortunately died with his colleagues in the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster as the shuttle exploded on impact with the atmospheres. Years later, the space agency was ready to get back on track and to lead the engine on a seven to eight week journey toward touchdown on the moon.
The lunar-bound spacecraft completed its first maneuver after the orbit around the earth and if successful, will make the nation proud as the first private-sector landing on the Moon and the first one from Israel.