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With a few years remaining until the moon boots agency target in 2024, NASA has named the three American companies to handle the mission portion.
The nearly $ 1 billion combined contract award during the 10-month base period will be split between Blue Origin, Dynetics and Jeff Bezos’ SpaceX.
Great news! the #Artemis The generation goes to the Moon to stay. I am pleased to announce that we have selected 3 US companies. USA To develop human landers who will land astronauts on the Moon: @BlueOrigin, @Dynetics AND @SpaceX. https://t.co/mF6OzFqJJC pic.twitter.com/nuMQlDIyGS
– Jim Bridenstine (@JimBridenstine) April 30, 2020
Two of them will also use the upcoming United Launch Alliance (ULA) Vulcan launch system, while the third continues to make great promises about their spacecraft, which appears to have taken a break from regular explosions and implosions during ground tests.
However, there was no love for Boeing, which has its own challenges in bringing NASA’s Space Launch System space rocket to the launch pad.
The Blue Origin launch is a “national team” with Lockheed Martin handling the lander’s climb element, Draper handling the guidance and navigation systems, and Northrop Grumman handling the transfer tasks. The Bezos crowd will be responsible for the descent part of the system, with a landing module powered by the Blue Origin BE-7 engine.
The first unmanned demonstrator will be unveiled in 2023, with humans circling the surface once again in 2024 if everything goes according to plan.
The NASA Source Selection Statement for the Human Landing System (HLS) rated Blue Origin “Acceptable” on the technical side and “Very Good” for management. However, despite $ 579 million to be hung on Blue Origin, the selection committee was concerned that “this system is comprised of multiple relatively low Technology Readiness Level (TRL) systems that will be difficult to manufacture, integrate and try”.
Dynetics scored higher, rated “Very Good” in both categories, and leads a team of more than 25 subcontractors with the goal of producing a low-launch agnostic design. He got $ 253 million from the pot.
SpaceX earned $ 135 million, and the selection statement rated it “Acceptable” in both technical and administrative terms. However, the report was concerned that the proposed powertrain was “remarkably complex” and did not address the possibility of delays particularly well. The company plans to use its Super Heavy Booster to launch a Starship vehicle, which will perform the lunar landing.
At the end of a 10-month monitoring and review period, NASA is likely to further narrow the field to those it believes have the best chance of meeting the increasingly ambitious 2024 deadline. ®
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