Key Facts
- Moon Base location
- Near the Moon’s South Pole
- Phase I timeframe
- Now through 2029
- Robotic landings in Phase I
- More than twenty
- Target delivery year
- 2028
- Commercial partners
- Blue Origin, Firefly Aerospace, Intuitive Machines, Voyager Lunar Systems
- NASA video update
- Released Tuesday
Background
NASA is making progress in building the Moon Base, which will become a resilient outpost near the Moon’s South Pole for science, technology, and eventual human operations. To advance lunar surface infrastructure development, commercial partners such as Blue Origin, Firefly Aerospace, Intuitive Machines, and Voyager Lunar Systems are working toward delivering landers by 2028.
Phase I of the Moon Base architecture plan, taking place now through 2029, includes more than twenty robotic landings, with each mission designed to incrementally advance system capabilities and validate operational components for those that follow. Before astronauts arrive, robotic missions will deploy critical scientific instruments that characterize the lunar environment, test new technologies, and begin assembling the infrastructure needed for human habitation.
Recurring deliveries under NASA’s CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative will play a vital role in building a dependable lunar supply chain, advancing the agency’s efforts toward a permanent human and robotic presence on the Moon.
Current Situation
On Tuesday, NASA released a Moon Base video update offering a closer look at the progress these four companies are making to advance their flights and hardware to further the agency’s Moon Base objectives.
Blue Origin’s Blue Moon MK1 lander is progressing through integrated testing to prepare for its upcoming lunar delivery. This first mission, named Endurance, represents a new class of commercial landers designed to deliver large-scale payloads to the lunar surface. The lander successfully completed an extensive environmental test campaign, including a thermal‑vacuum assessment at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, verifying its capability to perform under lunar‑like conditions.
Firefly’s Blue Ghost Mission 2 builds on its first successful lunar landing with a larger, dual‑spacecraft configuration built specifically for operations on the Moon’s far side. Blue Ghost is stacked on top of Elytra, Firefly’s orbital spacecraft, forming a 22‑foot‑tall system nearly three times the height of the spacecraft flown for Blue Ghost Mission 1 in 2025.
Intuitive Machines’ IM‑3 mission highlights how commercial landers are essential infrastructure to establish the Moon Base. This mission represents Intuitive Machines’ third Nova-C lunar landing on the Moon, and introduces Altus-1, the company’s first lunar data‑relay satellite, which will fly alongside the lander.
Voyager Technologies’ Griffin‑1 lander is undergoing testing in the Environmental Test Laboratory at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, a critical step toward being ready for its mission to the Moon. Griffin-1, built as an infrastructure‑class lander, plans to launch in late 2026 and will transport the largest commercial payload ever delivered to the lunar surface.
| Company | Lander/Mission | Key Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Blue Origin | Blue Moon MK1 / Endurance | Completed thermal-vacuum test at NASA Johnson Space Center |
| Firefly Aerospace | Blue Ghost Mission 2 | 22-foot-tall system, nearly three times height of Mission 1 |
| Intuitive Machines | IM-3 / Trinity | Third Nova-C landing; introduces Altus-1 data-relay satellite |
| Voyager Technologies | Griffin-1 | Plans to launch in late 2026; largest commercial payload to lunar surface |
Impacts
These landers will deliver the foundational architecture for a sustained presence on the Moon. Their progress represents major advances in commercial lunar delivery and lays the groundwork for the systems and surface capabilities the Moon Base will rely on.
The early robotic missions also will create opportunities to gather insights and improve the overall reliability of the Moon Base architecture. By deploying Altus-1 in lunar orbit with its three payloads and delivering five NASA payloads along with six commercial and one civil payload to the surface on IM-3, Intuitive Machines aims to advance Moon Base science objectives in Reiner Gamma’s geomagnetic environment, a magnetic anomaly on the lunar surface.
NASA is working with Northrop Grumman to develop three technology demonstration payloads slated for delivery to the lunar surface. These demonstrations build on power and avionics hardware developed for the Gateway program’s HALO (Habitation And Logistics Outpost) module, now being repurposed following NASA’s shift from an orbital-focused lunar strategy to one centered on surface operations.
Future Outlook
Scenario analysis: The possibilities below are not certain predictions.
If the current testing and integration milestones are completed as planned, Blue Origin’s Endurance could demonstrate precision landing capabilities, characterize the lunar environment, and test autonomous systems for future Moon Base missions. Up next, cryogenic propellants will be loaded as one of the final tests prior to integration for launch.
Firefly’s Blue Ghost Mission 2, planned to be the first American landing on the Moon’s far side, could explore a uniquely quiet region, allowing study of lunar far side geology and the cosmic Dark Ages. Carrying three NASA payloads, the mission aims to advance scientific research and test technologies for future habitation and infrastructure development.
If Griffin-1 completes environmental testing and final assembly, it may proceed to launch in late 2026, transporting the largest commercial payload ever delivered to the lunar surface. The mission objective includes advancing surface mobility capabilities, technology demonstrations, and long‑duration lunar operations.
Source: NASA
