To ensure that NASA’s Starship human landing system can fulfill the agency’s criteria for long-term human exploration of the Moon under the Artemis program, NASA has awarded SpaceX a contract modification to further develop the technology.
As a result of this modification, SpaceX will be able to contribute to NASA’s Artemis IV project in 2027 by conducting a second crewed landing demonstration mission.
It is an ambitious plan to send astronauts back to the Moon so they can study, live, and work there. “With multiple planned landers, from SpaceX and future partners, NASA will be better positioned to accomplish the missions of the future,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson. “These missions include conducting more science on the surface of the Moon than ever before and preparing for crewed missions to Mars.”
The change, which was given to SpaceX in July 2021 and is known as Option B, came as a result of an award made under the Next Space Technologies for Exploration Partnerships-2 (NextSTEP-2) Appendix H Option A contract.
The prior announcement made by NASA detailed their intentions to explore this Option B with SpaceX. The renegotiated terms of the contract are estimated to be worth approximately $1.15 billion.
According to Lisa Watson-Morgan, manager of the Human Landing System program at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, “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.” “This essential effort will assist us in focusing on the development of sustainable, service-based lunar landers that are rooted to NASA’s needs for repeatedly visiting the lunar surface,”
The purpose of the new work that is being done as part of Option B is to develop and demonstrate a Starship lunar lander that is capable of meeting all of NASA’s sustaining requirements for missions that go beyond Artemis III. These requirements include being able to dock with Gateway, having enough room for four crew members, and bringing more mass down to the surface.
NASA originally chose SpaceX to construct a human landing system variation of Starship in order to land the next American astronauts on the Moon under the Artemis III program. This will be the first time that humanity has returned to the lunar surface in almost half a century.
In accordance with the terms of that contract, SpaceX will also carry out an unmanned demonstration flight to the Moon in advance of the Artemis III mission.
The agency is pursuing two parallel paths for human lunar landers developed according to NASA‘s sustained requirements in order to increase the competitive pool of capable industry providers. These parallel paths include the existing contract with SpaceX as well as another solicitation that was released earlier this year.
The second proposal is known as NextSTEP-2 Appendix P, and it is accessible to all other U.S. corporations for the purpose of developing additional human landing system capabilities. This solicitation includes uncrewed as well as crewed demonstration trips from lunar orbit to the surface of the Moon.
In addition to the Space Launch System rocket, the Orion spacecraft, ground systems, spacesuits and rovers, and Gateway, astronaut Moon landers are an essential component of NASA’s ambitions for deep space exploration.
NASA plans to send a suite of new lunar science instruments and technology demonstrations to the moon as part of the Artemis program in order to conduct research on the moon, land the first woman and first person of color on the lunar surface, establish a long term lunar presence, and do a number of other things.
The space agency will draw on the experiences and technology gained through Artemis in order to get ready for the next big step, which is going to be sending astronauts to Mars.
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