NASA Awards Total of $967 Million to Blue Origin, Dynetics, SpaceX to Build Human Landing Systems for 2024 Moon Mission Written 1 May 2020
Illustrations of proposed lunar landers by, from left, Blue Origin, Dynetics and SpaceX. | Credit: Blue Origin, Dynetics, SpaceX; Aerospace America
Aerospace America reports that “in its desire to return Americans to the moon, NASA has selected three distinct lander designs for further work, indicating the agency is embracing flexibility as it works toward the first landing, scheduled for 2024, and others to follow.” NASA “awarded a combined $967 million to Blue Origin, Dynetics and SpaceX to begin building their Human Landing Systems and define the tests that will be required to prove their safety.” By “choosing ‘notably different architectures,’ NASA will ‘achieve the innovation and dissimilarity in redundancies’ that will increase its chances of success, said Lisa Watson-Morgan, program manager of the Human Landing System effort, during a call with reporters today.” After February 2021, NASA “will choose two of these landers for further funding, betting that at least one of them will be ready for 2024.” However, the “landers not chosen for the 2024 mission will not go to waste, said NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine during the call with reporters. If all goes according to plan, the 2024 mission will lay the groundwork for a permanent U.S. presence on the moon, and eventually a human mission to Mars.”
Full Story (Aerospace America)