With the launch of Intuitive Machines' Athena spacecraft atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket last night (Feb. 27), three lunar landers are currently on their way to the moon. Such a surge of exploration has never happened before — and all three vehicles are operated by private companies.

Intuitive Machines launches its second moon lander, which will use NASA and commercially developed tools to search for ice in the moon's crust.