NASA has outlined the first phase of its plans to establish a permanent moon base, awarding hundreds of millions of dollars in contracts to four U.S. companies. The announcement comes less than two months after the Artemis II mission in April, during which four astronauts traveled deeper into space than the Apollo crews by flying around the moon.
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman stated that the agency will begin building the moon base with near-monthly robotic landings starting in 2027, with the goal of having astronauts live on the lunar surface for months at a time by the early 2030s. To begin this process, NASA has announced plans for three uncrewed missions this year, while other robotic missions are targeted for 2026.
The contracts were awarded to Blue Origin, Firefly Aerospace, Astrolab, and Lunar Outpost. Lunar Outpost and Astrolab each received 281 million dollars to develop rovers capable of traveling autonomously on the moon. The missions will utilize landers, hopping drones, and roving vehicles, with Blue Origin, Firefly, and Astrolab delivering rovers to the lunar south pole.
These initiatives are part of the Trump administration’s efforts to jumpstart a lunar base before the end of the decade. The project's first mission could arrive as soon as this year with the help of Blue Origin.