On March 1, 2022, I had received a notification from Dr. Samuel Peralta (physicist, author, entrepreneur, art curator) that imagery of my artwork would be included in a time capsule that would be heading to the Moon. But I was not alone, far from it. Lunar Codex, founded and curated by Dr. Peralta would include creative works digitalized on nano fiche discs from 35,000 contemporary artists, writers, musicians and filmmakers from 233 countries, territories and indigenous nations. Three images of my paintings appeared in The Realism Issue (#67) of Poets and Artists Magazine back in September 2015. It was guest edited by Frank Bernarducci, and published by Didi Menendez. This magazine was digitized on one of the Codex Nova nano fiche discs.
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A first attempt of a
lunar lander mission was launched on January 8, 2024. Peregrine Mission One
built by Atrobotic Technology experienced problems shortly after the lander
separated from the rocket. A propellant leak prevented the lander from
completing its mission. The spacecraft would eventually be redirected back to
earth, where it burned over the Pacific Ocean, six days later on January 18.
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The second attempt was launched on February 15, 2024. The lunar lander, Nova-C named Odysseus was designed by Intuitive Machines. Codex Nova was among the small payload carried by Odysseus that successfully landed on the South Pole of the Moon yesterday evening, February 22. This historical event would mark the first American spacecraft to perform a soft landing on the Moon in over 50 years, since Apollo 17 in 1972.
The Odysseus lunar lander, including all payloads - is now a de facto Artemis Accords Heritage Site - and all the artworks, writings, music, and film on Codex Nova are now part of the designated heritage of humanity, to be preserved for posterity as signed by 36 countries to date.
Lunar landing of Odysseus, February 22, 2024
YouTube video from the NASA Channel
(skip to 1h41min for landing confirmation)
