Key Takeaways Shares of Intuitive Machines rose Thursday after the company's lunar lander took off on a SpaceX rocket Wednesday night.The Athena lander will touch down on the moon in the coming days as the second mission in NASA's Commercial Lunar Payload Services program.

The company reached the lunar surface in 2024, and now its second lander aims to improve on the feat. Three other spacecraft also hitched a ride on the SpaceX rocket.

Intuitive Machines' second moon lander was launched on Wednesday atop a SpaceX rocket, setting off for the latest private U.S. moonshot one year after the company's first attempt ended early with a lopsided landing.