New lunar lander Athena set to launch this week to explore moon's south pole

A new lunar lander named Athena is set to launch this week on a SpaceX rocket. This mission follows Intuitive Machines' historic first successful private moon landing last year. Athena will explore the moon's south pole for subsurface water. The launch is scheduled for Wednesday at 7:17 p.m. ET from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. Athena will carry a drill and instruments to study the moon's soil and will also test a 4G communications system developed by Nokia. Athena will release a drone named Grace to explore the landing site. The mission aims to gather data on potential water ice deposits, which are important for future lunar exploration.