It's go time for this lunar lander.
The spacecraft is lighting its engine for an 11-minute burn. This is one of the last milestones before touchdown.
The decision to swoop in for landing comes despite the fact that the vehicle's sensors — or rangefinders — weren't working. Teams on the ground were able to troubleshoot the issue by reprogramming Odysseus to rely on an experimental NASA payload on board: The Navigation Doppler Lidar.
During this burn, the lander will slow down by about 1,800 meters per second, aiming to hit the brakes for a gentle touchdown at 6:24 p.m. ET.
From here, the spacecraft is fully autonomous and there's no communication with the vehicle until landing.