Canadian-made lunar dust repellent heading to the moon aboard Firefly’s Blue Ghost

By Canadian Press on March 1, 2025.

ST. JOHN’S, N.L. — A Canadian-made lunar dust repellent is expected to land on the moon Sunday as part of a NASA-led study.

Jacob Kleiman of Integrity Testing Laboratory Inc. says Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost lunar lander is carrying two materials treated with his company’s dust-repelling technology, so it can be tested on the moon.

Kleiman says moon dust particles are extremely fine, abrasive and electromagnetically charged, and they cling to everything, including mechanical equipment and astronauts’ space suits.

He says scientists have long sought to find ways to keep it from building up, and his samples are on the Blue Ghost as part of an experiment testing materials for their dust-repellent properties.

Kleiman says his small, Ontario-based operation is the only Canadian company to be part of the study.

Firefly’s website says the Blue Ghost spacecraft launched on Jan. 15, and it is expected to land on the moon Sunday at 3:34 a.m. EST.

— With files from The Associated Press

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 1, 2025.

The Canadian Press