The Houston-based company that was set to deliver a historic water-hunting mission to the lunar south pole says its Athena lander is dead on the moon.

In a dramatic turn of events, NASA's Athena lunar lander, part of the IM-2 mission, has stopped functioning after a challenging landing on the Moon. The lander, designed by Intuitive Machines, touched down approximately 250 meters from its intended target in the Mons Mouton region near the lunar south pole.

A private lunar lander has made its way to the moon's surface on Thursday, but there's a bit of a nail-biter as flight controllers are left scratching their heads, unable to confirm the status of the lander or if it's even standing up straight by the south pole.