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March 4, 2024 at 5:24 p.m. EST
This image provided by Intuitive Machines on Feb. 27 shows its Odysseus lunar lander over the south pole region of the moon. (Intuitive Machines/AP)

Regarding the Feb. 29 news article “NASA calls Odysseus landing a success, despite problems”:

I hope these “shots on goal” by Intuitive Machines, Astrobotic and other companies under NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services program come closer to full-blown, without-a-doubt, total successes on their missions. Otherwise, I fear expectations might start diminishing, and a culture of accepting partial successes as “good enough” might take hold, just as Artemis ramps up.

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We don’t need a more casual mentality creeping in, especially when the big players in Artemis, such as Boeing, are having their own quality-control issues these days.

Clinton Thacker, Fairfax County