A company says its moon landing is in jeopardy after a propulsion problem prevented the newly launched spacecraft from pointing towards the sun for power.

Astrobotic Technology, based in Pittsburgh in the US, was racing to turn the lander towards the sun so its solar panel could collect sunlight, as its battery power dwindled.

The problem arose about seven hours after Monday’s pre-dawn lift-off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.

United Launch Alliance’s Vulcan rocket provided the lift for Astrobotic’s lander, named Peregrine, putting it on a long, roundabout path to the moon.

Update #2 on Peregrine Mission One: pic.twitter.com/hS5QsAihh4

— Astrobotic (@astrobotic) January 8, 2024

If the propulsion system is at fault it “threatens the ability of the spacecraft to soft land on the moon” on February 23, the company said in a statement.

“We continue to gather data and report our best assessment of what we see,” the company added.

Astrobotic was aiming to be the first private business to successfully land on the moon, something only four countries have accomplished.

A second lander from a company in Houston, Texas, is due to launch next month.

Nasa gave the two companies millions to build and fly their own lunar landers.

The space agency wants the privately owned landers to scope out the moon before astronauts arrive while delivering tech and science experiments for Nasa, other countries and universities as well as odds and ends for other customers.