Texas-based Intuitive Machine – which landed a robot near the moon’s south pole in February – was awarded the design by Colorado’s Lunar Observatory and California’s Venturi Astrolabe under a contract worth a total of $4.6 billion.
The US space agency hopes that one of the three companies will be awarded a “demonstration mission,” meaning a flight test for the Lunar Surface Vehicle (LTV) before the crew arrives for the Artemis 5 mission. According to NASA’s latest budget request, it is currently scheduled for 2030.
“We are developing the capabilities necessary for long-term lunar exploration and detection,” said Jacob Blair, NASA’s chief research scientist. “I love the view and imagination that LTV will allow us to see from the surface of the Moon.”
Although the contract was awarded to a new company, cooperated with more established players in the aerospace industry.
Astrolab said the contract for the Flexible Logistic and Explorer (FLEX) rover, which is being developed with Axiom Space and Odyssey Space, could be worth “up to $1.9 billion.” Research. The initial design of the Rover is shown in 2022.
Lunar Outpost is working on Lunar Dawn LTV and a team called Lunar Dawn with Lockheed Martin, General Motors, Goodyear and MDA Space.
“We are using the latest technology and the automotive industry to deliver the right all-terrain vehicle that will allow us to live and work on the moon,” said Justin Keer, the company’s CEO.
Rather than buying equipment, NASA has said it will buy services from companies — a contracting model that is growing to cut costs and encourage a broader space economy. Finally, the selected companies may also have clients in the private sector themselves.
The US plans to return astronauts to the moon and establish a permanent presence in the Artemis program, named after Apollo’s sister in Greek mythology.
The first crewed mission, Artemis 3, aims to land in 2026, but such a plan is widely believed to be overly optimistic. China also plans to send a crew to the Moon in the 2030s as the new space race heats up.
