If the maneuver works, Beresheet will be reined into an elliptical orbit around the moon, passing within 310 miles of the surface and swinging out as far as 6,200 miles away.

Over the next week, it will fire its engine again to pull into a circular orbit 124 miles above the moon’s surface. If all continues to go to plan, Beresheet is to attempt a soft landing on April 11. To date, that is a feat that has only been accomplished by the governmental space agencies of the United States, the former Soviet Union and China.

SpaceIL’s original goal was to win the Google Lunar X Prize competition, which offered $20 million for the first privately financed venture to put a robotic spacecraft on the moon. But the prize expired last year before any of the teams could claim it.

SpaceIL pushed on, with the hope that its mission would inspire Israeli students to pursue careers in science and engineering.