The Odysseus spacecraft became the first American spacecraft to land on the Moon in 50 years

The Odysseus spacecraft manufactured by Houston-based Intuitive Machines has successfully landed on the surface of the Moon. It is the first time a spacecraft from a private company has landed on the lunar surface, and it is the first U.S.-made craft to reach the Moon since the Apollo missions.

Odysseus carried NASA instruments, which the space agency said would be used to help prepare for future crewed missions to the Moon under the . NASA confirmed that the landing took place at 6:23 p.m. ET on February 22. The lander blasted off from Earth on February 15, with the help of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.

According to , there were some “technical problems with the flight” which delayed the landing by a few hours. Tim Crain, technical director of Intuitive Machines, told the newspaper that “Odysseus is definitely on the moon and operational, but it remains to be seen whether the mission can achieve its objectives.” Odysseus has a limited window of about a week to send data back to Earth before darkness sets in and renders the solar craft unusable.

Intuitive Machines wasn’t the first private company to attempt a landing. Astrobotics made last month with its Peregrine lander, but without success. Intuitive Machines plans to launch lunar landers this year.