Published • loading... • Updated
NASA lays out moon base plans with landers, buggies and drones at the top of the list
- On Tuesday, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman announced nearly $1 billion in new moon base contracts, awarding agreements to Blue Origin, Astrolab, Lunar Outpost and Firefly Aerospace for landers, rovers and drones targeting launch by end of 2026.
- Following April's Artemis II mission, which sent four astronauts farther from Earth than ever before, Isaacman announced in March that NASA would shift from a floating orbital station to investing billions directly in lunar surface infrastructure.
- Astrolab and Lunar Outpost each received over $200 million to build lunar terrain vehicles capable of 6 to 9 miles per hour, while Blue Origin secured $188 million with options worth $280.4 million for terrain vehicle delivery, and Firefly will deploy MoonFall drones of 225 kg each.
- Moon Base program executive Carlos García-Galán envisions the base eventually spanning hundreds of square miles with astronaut crews arriving twice yearly, while Isaacman committed to work with multiple launch providers for crewed landings every six months by the early 2030s.
- Artemis III will test commercial landers in Earth orbit by mid-2027 ahead of crewed landings in 2028, though Isaacman cited a $10 billion appropriation without providing total costs as the White House proposes cutting NASA's budget 23% while inspectors general project Artemis exceeding $93 billion.
Insights by Ground AI
Podcasts & Opinions
203 Articles
203 Articles
NASA Moon Base Mission: Space Agency Orders Landers, Rovers and Drones After Artemis II Lunar Flyaround Success | 🔬 LatestLY
NASA is already ordering landers, rovers and drones for a sprawling moon base, less than two months after the Artemis II's record-breaking lunar flyaround. The space agency outlined the first phase of its moon base plans on Tuesday, awarding hundreds of millions of dollars in contracts to four U.S. companies. 🔬 NASA Moon Base Mission: Space Agency Orders Landers, Rovers and Drones After Artemis II Lunar Flyaround Success.
Base at the southern pole of the Moon will be ready in the coming years. This area with shaded regions, which allow the presence of ice, will facilitate the constant permanence of astronauts on the surface.
·Portugal
Read Full ArticleCoverage Details
Total News Sources203
Leaning Left46Leaning Right24Center88Last UpdatedBias Distribution56% Center
Bias Distribution
- 56% of the sources are Center
56% Center
L 29%
C 56%
15%
Factuality
To view factuality data please Upgrade to Premium
