Astrobotic, Firefly Aerospace, and Intuitive Machines have all received contracts to deliver NASA payloads to the surface of the Moon, as part of NASA’s work to establish a base on the Moon.
The three providers will fly updated versions of their already-flown landers, and the missions are set to launch in late 2028, NASA said in a Tuesday announcement. These awards are part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative.
Astrobotic is awarded $297.9 million total for two deliveries. The company will fly its Peregrine lander, with additional capacity for commercial, government, academic, and international customers, the company said. Astrobotic is set to be acquired by Voyager under a recently announced deal.
Firefly Aerospace will receive $144.2 million and Intuitive Machines $148.3 million for one delivery each.
For Firefly’s Blue Ghost lander, it will be the sixth contracted lunar mission.
Each mission will carry three NASA payloads: a group of cameras to study the engine’s exhaust plume on lunar dust; a laser retroreflector array; and a radiation monitor. NASA is reviewing the possibility for additional payloads as well.
“These new awards to our commercial partners, totaling nearly $600 million to land more missions on the Moon with science payloads, demonstrate our commitment to accelerating our effort to build a long-term presence on the lunar surface, and give us more opportunity to develop the skills we need to prosper there,” Lori Glaze, associate administrator for the Human Spaceflight Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters, said in a statement.
