Intuitive Machines Preps Technology for CLPS Moon Surface Mission Series
Houston TX team behind Nova-C robotic lunar lander striving to achieve 26 Feb IM-1 mission to equatorial lunar nearside via SpaceX Falcon 9, partnering with IronNet on IT security, MDA providing landing sensors; IM-2 in Q4 2022 to set “first node in a lunar communication and navigation network” in orbit, manufactured by York Space Systems and powered by Hall effect ion ExoMG cluster x2 (15 mN thrust), deployed via rocket ESPA; Spaceflight Inc Sherpa Orbital Transfer Vehicle to deploy Nova-C rideshares directly in ongoing series (IM-3 set for Q1 2024)
Sustainable Moon settlement study centered around in-situ food production, also conducting research on long duration physiological and psychological human effects, to be launched by JAXA in partnership with Space Foodsphere, a Tokyo-based study group with wide industry membership including Euglena Co. (algae-based biofuels), NTT Data (information technology) and Ajinomoto Co. (food science); Facilities within Japan may begin construction March 2022, with Antarctic locations to follow and vision of transferring technology to terraformation of exoplanets circa 2100
In what may be the most significant private lunar effort outside of NASA CLPS, an international coalition led by ispace is preparing for Q2 2022 Mission 1, with final assembly of flight-ready Hakuto-R lander underway at Arianespace facility in Germany; payloads include optics from Canadensys and AI from Mission Control Space Services (Canada), solid-state battery test from NGK (Japan), 10-kg Rashid rover (UAE); 2023 Mission 2 includes Oxygen harvesting experiment from Helios (Israel); Lunar Industry Vision Council of Japan seeking “self-sustaining lunar industry” within “new cis-lunar space ecosystem”
Crewed Launch Vehicle Being Developed By China Aerospace Science and Technology Codenamed 921, Reference To Chinese National Manned Space Program (Shenzhou) 1992 Founding Date, May Be More Timely Alternative Than Super Heavy Lift Vehicle Long March 9 To Achieve China Human Moon Landing; LM-9 Most Recent Design Iteration Calls For 10.6-m Diameter Core Stage With 16 YF-135 Engines Sans Auxiliary Boosters, Suggestive Of Reusability Goals; ‘921 Rocket’ Speculated To Be Designated Long March 5DY And Could Be Used To Ferry Crew To TLI With 2-Craft Configuration By 2025
Wu Yanhua Of CNSA And Sergey Saveliev Of Roscosmos Present Guide For Partnership v1.0 At GLEX 2021 In St Petersburg, Russia; 3 Development Phases (Reconnaissance, Construction, Utilization) Encompassing 5-Facility Station (Cis-Lunar Transportation In Space + Long-Term Support, Transport And Operation, Science, And Ground Support & Application On Surface), With 8 Science Objectives (Lunar Geology, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, ISRU, Astronomy / Earth Observation From Moon, Cis-Lunar Space); Limited Collaboration Opportunities For Chang’e 7-8 And Luna 25-28, With Broader Participation In ILRS Missions 1-5 Between 2031-35
Luna 25 Launch Set For 1 October, Marking Resumption Of Lunar Exploration Activities After 45+ Year Hiatus For Russia, First Nation To Robotically Explore Moon; Luna 25 To Attempt Landing At Boguslavsky Crater Near Moon South Pole (72.9°S, 43.2°E) To Investigate Subsurface Ice Deposits; Luna 26 (2024), Lunar 27 (2025), Luna 28 (2027) To Culminate With International Lunar Research Station Buildout With China & Human Lunar Missions By Decade End; Nuclear-Powered Zeus To Launch From Moon Orbit 2030, Exploit Venus Gravity-Assist On Jupiter Trajectory During 50-Month, US$58M Mission
Administrator Bill Nelson Outlines Vision For Future Of USA Space Activity, Telling 
