NASA awards $590 million CLPS contracts to support Artemis moon base
Technology
NASA just handed out $590 million in contracts to Astrobotic, Firefly Aerospace, and Intuitive Machines to send robotic landers to the moon.
Announced June 30 as part of the CLPS program, these missions will help build up Artemis's planned moon base near the lunar south pole by late 2028.
Astrobotic awarded $297.9 million for 2 missions
Astrobotic scored the biggest deal with two missions ($297.9 million), while Firefly and Intuitive Machines each got one.
Their uncrewed landers will deliver rovers and gear to explore surface conditions, hunt for water ice, and test what it will take to support humans on the moon long term.
The landers also carry sensors to study how rocket engines affect lunar soil, helping NASA design safer future missions as competition in space heats up.