Two moon landers, one from Japan's ispace and another from U.S. space firm Firefly, began their journeys into space on Wednesday with SpaceX's unusual double moonshot launch, underscoring the global rush to examine the lunar surface.

SpaceX launched Japan’s ispace Resilience and the US-based Firefly Blue Ghost as part of the global effort to explore the moon. Resilience seeks a second lunar landing attempt after a prior setback, while Firefly embarks on its first mission.

Two moon landers built by private U.S. and Japanese companies are on their way to the moon after lifting off early Wednesday on a shared ride aboard a SpaceX rocket. The launch from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida is the latest in a public-private program that put a spacecraft from Intuitive Machines on the moon last year.