• SpaceX has been cooperating with NASA as part of the Artemis program since 2021
• “Option B”: $1.15 billion treaty change
SpaceX and NASA in close cooperation
NASA and SpaceX have been working closely together for quite some time. Only last year did the space company bid for the entrepreneur Elon Musk the US space agency to help with the development of new space suits. The reason for this was that NASA was unable to complete the space suits planned for 2023 on time due to funding bottlenecks, COVID-19 and technical challenges. NASA itself recently explained in a press release how important partners like SpaceX are: “With several planned landings from SpaceX and future partners, NASA will be better able to fulfill the missions of tomorrow: more science on the lunar surface than ever operate beforehand and prepare for manned missions to Mars,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson.
The Mission Artemis
Also in 2021, NASA signed a roughly $2.9 billion contract with SpaceX that stipulates the development of a manned landing system for the Artemis program. A Starship rocket from the US company is to be used to transport the astronauts to the moon as part of the mission. NASA also stated that this mission aims to put the first female and the first person of color on the moon. The aim is to further explore the lunar surface with the latest technologies and to establish the first long-term presence on the moon.
Contract change for the Artemis mission
As NASA now explains in a recent press release, SpaceX has been tasked with a contract change as part of the Artemis program. The change, also dubbed “Option B,” is valued at approximately $1.15 billion and goes beyond just the first voyage to the moon: “Continuing our collaboration with SpaceX through Option B furthers our resilient Plans for regular manned transport to the lunar surface and establishing a long-term human presence under Artemis,” said Lisa Watson-Morgan, manager for the Human Landing System program at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama. The goal of the contract change is to develop and demonstrate a Starship lunar lander that meets NASA’s post-Artemis III mission requirements, including docking with the Gateway, housing four crew members, and delivering more mass to the surface. “This critical work will help us focus on developing sustainable, service-based lunar landers that meet NASA’s requirements for recurring missions to the lunar surface,” continued Watson-Morgan.
E. Schmal / Editor finanzen.net
Image sources: SpaceX, Alones