UNAM confirms operation of the Colmena project in deep space

MEXICO - The Institute of Nuclear Sciences (ICN) of the UNAM confirmed the operation of the Colmena project, 3 days after the launch of the mission that traveled inside the Peregrine module of the Astrobotic spacecraft, thus confirming the success of the project by reaching 75% of the objectives set.

"Today #Astrobotic announced that of the 10 payloads scheduled to be launched for testing, #Colmena managed to be energized, establish communication and generate data, which are already being downloaded to our control center at the #ICN," was published this Thursday on the Institute's official account through X (formerly Twitter).

"With this we can say that at least 75% of the objectives set for this first mission have been met, which created the future path of #Mexico to the #Moon," it was pointed out.

Also published were images of Dr. Gustavo Medina Tanco, Researcher at the Institute of Nuclear Research of the UNAM and leader of the Laboratory of Space Instrumentation (LINX) in charge of the creation and development of the Colmena project, who along with his team celebrates the news.

"After almost 10 years of hard work by academics and the collaboration of more than 250 students, we share with you the exact moment when the successful operation of #Colmena in deep space was confirmed," reads the messages.

The texts state that "it was possible to generate the necessary techno-scientific knowledge, the training of highly specialized human resources and the linkage with national and international companies and institutions. Currently, at least two more missions are already contemplated, one that could be sent in 2027 and another in 2030".

It is worth mentioning that the Astrobotic company has published updates on the status of the spacecraft that presented a propulsion problem in the first hours after a successful launch, which made it impossible to perform the lunar landing as planned, but has not prevented the Colmena project from carrying out tests and now, testing its operation in space and collecting valuable data for the following missions.