NASA Provides Progress Update on Moon Base Rovers
NASA outlined progress on Moon Base rovers, including crewed lunar terrain vehicles and robotic systems, ahead of Artemis missions to the lunar South Pole starting in 2027.
NASA’s Moon Base Program is advancing surface mobility systems, including commercial lunar terrain vehicles and robotic rovers, to support infrastructure development for long-duration lunar exploration. These vehicles will enable astronaut transport, terrain mapping, scientific investigations, and resource prospecting during early lunar outpost construction. Data collected will guide future mobility designs and operational strategies for sustainable human presence on the Moon.
NASA’s VIPER rover is scheduled to land at the lunar South Pole in 2027 aboard a Blue Moon Mark 1 lander, traveling over 18 miles to study permanently shadowed craters for water and other resources. Mission operations will be managed from NASA’s Ames Research Center, while the rover undergoes final testing at Johnson Space Center before launch from Kennedy Space Center. The mission aims to inform resource utilization and the Moon Base’s infrastructure planning.
NASA awarded Astrolab and Lunar Outpost task orders to develop crewed lunar terrain vehicles (LTVs) for delivery to the South Pole by 2028 under the CLPS initiative. The LTVs will operate remotely, traverse up to 3.7 miles daily, and support up to three moonwalks per Artemis mission, collecting environmental data and mapping terrain before crew arrival.
Astrolab’s CLV-1 and Lunar Outpost’s Pegasus LTVs are undergoing crewed testing and design evaluations with NASA astronauts in pressurized spacesuits. Both companies are preparing robotic predecessors—Astrolab’s FLIP and Lunar Outpost’s MAPP—for lunar missions in 2026 and 2027 to test critical subsystems. Flight-ready hardware is expected by the end of 2027, with preliminary design reviews scheduled for October and December.