As part of the Artemis program, NASA is preparing to send the “first woman and the next man” to the moon by 2024. The focus is on the development of the Space Launch System (SLS), the most powerful rocket since Saturn V. That brought the Apollo astronauts to the moon and the Orion spaceship. After these elements put astronauts into orbit, they need a lander to get them to and from the surface.
For this reason, NASA commissioned a number of trading partners to develop a Human Landing System (HLS). After much deliberation, NASA announced on Friday April 16 that they had selected SpaceX to further develop their concept for a lunar lander. When American astronauts return to the moon for the first time in fifty-two years, it will be a modified version of the spaceship that will take them there.
The SpaceX concept was one of three finalists selected by NASA in April 2020 to develop an HLS proposal as part of Appendix H: Human Landing System of the NextSTEP-2 (Next Space Technologies for Exploration Partnerships) program . Together with Blue Origin and Dynetics, the finalists received contracts worth $ 967 million for the 10-month base period. With this latest award, SpaceX has signed a fixed, fixed-price contract valued at $ 2.89 billion.
SpaceX’s HLS concept envisions a fully integrated vehicle that is similar in design to the Starship – the orbiter element of a fully reusable two-stage super-heavy launch system that the company is currently developing. During the HLS base period of performance, SpaceX engineers worked closely with NASA experts to create a lander design that would meet NASA’s performance requirements and manned spaceflight standards.
The HLS Starship leverages the company’s proven Raptor engine design as well as the company’s experience with launchers and spacecraft – the Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy missiles and the Dragon vehicles. The HLS Starship design also includes a spacious cabin for the four astronauts and two airlocks for off-vehicle activities (EVAs) – also known as. “Moon walks.”
As Kathy Lueders, NASA Assistant Administrator for the Directorate of Human Exploration and Operations Missions (HEOSM), said in a NASA press release:
“With this award, NASA and our partners will complete the first crewed demonstration mission to the lunar surface in the 21st century as the agency takes a step forward in women’s equality and long-term space exploration. This crucial step puts mankind on the path to sustainable lunar exploration and keeps an eye on missions further down the solar system, including Mars. “
When the Artemis III mission kicks off (currently planned for October 2024), SLS and Orion will send four astronauts on a multi-day trip into lunar orbit. At this point, two crew members will transfer to the SpaceX HLS to complete the final leg of the journey and descend to the lunar surface. After about a week of surface exploration, the astronauts will take off aboard the lander to meet with Orion and return to Earth.
This will be a historic event, and not just because it will be the first time since the last Apollo-era mission that boots will be placed on the lunar surface. This was Apollo 17, which took place in December 1972 and in which the astronauts Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt spent three days on the lunar surface and carried out the longest “lunar walk” (also the longest) to date.
This time at least one of the two astronauts landing on the moon will be a woman. Another goal of the Artemis program is to have the first colored person walk on the lunar surface. Lisa Watson-Morgan, program manager for HLS at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center, said:
“This is an exciting time for NASA and especially for the Artemis team. During the Apollo program, we proved that it is possible to do the seemingly impossible: land people on the moon. By taking a collaborative approach to working with industry and leveraging NASA’s proven technical knowledge and skills, we will bring American astronauts back to the lunar surface, this time exploring new areas for longer periods of time. “
Illustration of Artemis astronauts on the moon. Credits: NASA
In addition to the Appendix H award, NASA plans to introduce competitive procurement for the development of crewed lunar transport services. In line with their goal of developing a “sustainable lunar exploration” program that goes well beyond the Artemis program, this service will enable human access to and from the lunar surface through the Lunar Gateway.
Earlier this year, NASA announced that it had signed a contract with SpaceX to provide launch services for the gateway’s core elements. These include the Power and Propulsion Element (PPE) and the Habitation and Logistics Outpost (HALO), both of which are scheduled to launch from Launch Complex 39A in NASA’s Kennedy Space Center on a Falcon Heavy rocket in May 2024 at the earliest.
Further reading: NASA
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