IM-2 Athena lies at 84.79° S, 29.20° E, 158.0 km from the Moon's south pole. Landed 6 Mar 2025 on Mons Mouton, the closest to the pole of any lander so far; position from LROC.
Plan a landing here Stand there in 3DOver the next twelve months, worked out by the Lunar Mission Browser from NASA's LOLA terrain, the Sun is up for a panel at ground level 47% of the time, and a Deep Space Network dish can talk to a lander here 80% of the time. The sunniest 30 days start on 17 Oct 2026, 53% sunlit.
| 30 days from | Sunlit | Link to Earth | Longest night |
|---|---|---|---|
| 17 Oct 2026 | 53% | 82% | 14.0 days |
| 16 Nov 2026 | 53% | 81% | 14.0 days |
| 16 Dec 2026 | 51% | 80% | 14.8 days |
| 15 Jan 2027 | 48% | 80% | 15.5 days |
| 14 Feb 2027 | 46% | 80% | 16.2 days |
| 16 Mar 2027 | 42% | 82% | 16.9 days |
| 15 Apr 2027 | 39% | 83% | 17.2 days |
| 15 May 2027 | 40% | 79% | 17.0 days |
| 14 Jun 2027 | 45% | 71% | 16.5 days |
| 14 Jul 2027 | 48% | 75% | 15.7 days |
| 13 Aug 2027 | 50% | 81% | 15.0 days |
| 12 Sept 2027 | 53% | 83% | 14.2 days |
Sunlit: the Sun's disc above the skyline for a panel on the ground. Link: Earth above the skyline and the Moon at least 10° up at a Deep Space Network dish. Each row opens the browser on those 30 days, where a mast, another network or the elevation floor can be changed.
| Type | Lander on the surface |
| Position | 84.7906° S, 29.1957° E |
| Distance from the pole | 158.0 km |
| Highest point on its skyline | 4.05° above the horizontal, at azimuth 117° |