Blue Ghost lander captures stunning lunar sunset images
A lunar lander named Blue Ghost has sent back stunning images of a sunset on the moon. It captured the scene from a location called Mons Latreille in the Mare Crisium basin. The photos were shared on March 18, 2025. The images show the horizon lighting up as the sun sets, with Earth and Venus visible in the sky. Venus appears as a bright dot near the sun, while Earth looks larger and brighter to the left. Unlike Earth, sunsets on the moon are rare. A full day on the moon lasts about 14.5 Earth days because the moon is tidally locked to our planet. The Blue Ghost lander was launched on January 15 and landed on March 2. It operated for just over two weeks, powered by solar panels and then batteries. It took a total of 346 hours of daylight images during this time. The mission started with a sunrise image on March 3 and also captured a significant lunar eclipse on March 14. This mission, called "Ghost Riders in the Sky," is notable for being the longest commercial mission on the lunar surface. Nicky Fox from NASA praised the mission for providing valuable scientific data.