NASA awards Blue Origin a $190 million CLPS contract to land the VIPER rover at the Moon’s South Pole in 2027 to search for water ice supporting future human missions.
Blue Origin lands a fresh NASA contract for new work – expanding its role in space exploration.
Photo Credit: Blue Origin
Blue Origin received a new work order from NASA for the Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program to deliver the VIPER (Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover) to the Moon's South Pole. After being derailed due to budget overruns in 2024, VIPER is back on track for a launch in late 2027 with the Blue Origin's Blue Moon Mark 1 lander. The purpose of this expedition is to find ice resources that are essential to be able to maintain human lunar exploration in the future.
According to an official NASA news release, the CLPS task order, called CS-7, has an estimated value of up to $190 million. Its initial phase, which is currently underway, is aimed at designing payload accommodations and verifying the unloading process. Subsequently, NASA will be allowed to choose the extent of the delivery and the surface deployment. As part of their agreement, Blue Origin is in charge of the mission architecture, payload integration, and lunar landing operations. However, NASA will be responsible for rover control and will provide scientific oversight throughout the mission.
VIPER is going to explore craters that are in permanent shadow close to the South Pole for roughly 100 days of the Earth; it will be using its TRIDENT tool to drill as far as one metre into the ground to search for water ice and to map it. These volatiles could be used as drinking water, the source of breathable oxygen, and the production of energy for rockets. This mission follows the one that was initially planned with Astrobotic's Griffin lander, but had to be cancelled due to problems with the schedule and cost.
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