To meet their needs for long-term human exploration of the Moon under Artemis, NASA has granted SpaceX a contract modification to further develop its Starship human landing device.
In 2027, as part of NASA’s Artemis IV mission, SpaceX will offer a second crewed landing demonstration flight thanks to this feature.
“Returning astronauts to the Moon to learn, live, and work is a bold endeavor. With multiple planned landers, from SpaceX and future partners, NASA will be better positioned to accomplish the missions of tomorrow: conducting more science on the surface of the Moon than ever before and preparing for crewed missions to Mars,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson.
The adjustment, referred to as Option B, comes after SpaceX was granted a contract under Appendix H of the Next Space Technologies for Exploration Partnerships-2 (NextSTEP-2) contract in July 2021.
NASA previously stated intentions to work with SpaceX to implement this Option B. The contract amendment is worth around $1.15 billion.
“Continuing our collaborative efforts with SpaceX through Option B furthers our resilient plans for regular crewed transportation to the lunar surface and establishing a long-term human presence under Artemis,” said Lisa Watson-Morgan, manager for the Human Landing System program at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama.
“This critical work will help us focus on the development of sustainable, service-based lunar landers anchored to NASA’s requirements for regularly recurring missions to the lunar surface.”
This new endeavor under Option B aims to create and demonstrate a Starship lunar lander that can dock with Gateway, carry four crew members, and transfer greater mass to the surface while also meeting NASA’s sustaining requirements for missions after Artemis III.
For Artemis III, which will be the first time in more than 50 years that humans will set foot on the lunar surface, NASA first chose SpaceX to develop a human landing system variation of the Starship.
Prior to Artemis III, SpaceX will fly a demonstration mission to the Moon without humans as part of that agreement.
NASA’s Artemis mission will research the Moon, send the first woman and first person of color on the lunar surface, establish a long-term lunar presence, and more with a variety of novel lunar science instruments and technology demonstrations.
In order to get ready for the next big leap, which is sending astronauts to Mars, the agency will draw on its Artemis experiences and technology.
To read our blog on “NASA ignites its most powerful rocket for the Artemis 1 lunar mission,” click here.
