Blue origin wins NASA deal to Viber Rover to the lunar southern pole

On Friday, the blue origin won a major NASA contract to bring the moon’s Rover to the moon, a strong vote on confidence in both Blue Moon Lander and the future of human exploration.

The contract also means that Viper Rover will finally see the moon after NASA raised the entire program last year due to delay and costs.

Under the deal, Blue Orige VIRE – short for “Folaatiles Investigation at Rover Polar Explography Rover” – will carry on his land, Blue Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Moon Separately, NASA gave the company a contract for the human classification under Artemis, but this program differs from this task.

This new prize was awarded under the request of NASA’s lunar load services for approximately $ 190 million. Blue Moon MK1 targets a location near the lunar southern pole, where scientists suspect large water ice stores. VIPER will go down on the surface to test that hypothesis.

The decision closes an uncertain chapter for Viper. The agency chose for the first time in Petsburg to its headquarters Astrobooth in 2020 To offer Rover to Griffin Lander, a prize of $ 199.5 million. After delaying both Rover and Lander, NASA was canceled in July 2024Quoting amplification costs, although many devices have already been built.

This step has sparked criticism from legislators and scholars. One month later, NASA issued a request to obtain ideas from American companies to explore ways to put the current Rover at work without adding additional costs to the government.

As for the blue origin, this victory is important: this award gives the shipment of shipping its first high-level scientific load and predicts it according to a schedule-late in 2027. It also represents a major support in NASA for the lunar company’s ambitions after holding the human landing system.

About the size of the golf cart, VIPER will spend nearly 100 days on the moon, driving around it, excavating, and digging to draw the water of the ice. Rover is equipped with several tools, including drilling and three designed water, hydrogen and other mineral detection.

The results are the key to the future scientific goals of NASA and any long-term human presence on the surface of the moon, where the extraction of resources on the site-instead of transferring them from the Earth-will be very important. One day ice can be converted into drinking water, oxygen, and even missile motivation.