Category Archives: Lunar Landers

Weekend Edition
Fri-Mon / 14-17 Feb 2020

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New Race To Moon South Pole – Malapert Mountain

Multiple Nations And Commercial Enterprises Aiming For Lunar South Polar Region; Following CNSA Chang’e-5 Sample Return In 2020, Chang’e-6 And Chang’e-7 Will Explore South Pole; ISRO Chandrayaan-3, -4 and -5 Will Continue Polar Landing Goal Of Chandrayaan-2; SpaceX Promises Lunar Landings By 2022; NASA Commercial Lunar Payload Services May Carry Payloads Such As The International Lunar Observatory ILO-1 For Galaxy Imaging And Broadcasting From Malapert Mountain, One Of The Most Important And Valuable Sites In Solar System

Credits: NASA, CNSA, ISRO, SpaceX, ILOA

Tuesday / 4 February 2020

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Blue Origin To Test BE-7 Lunar Lander Engine At Edwards AFB

Blue Origin Partners With Air Force Research Laboratory To Develop Test Facility For BE-7 Lunar Lander Engine, Signs 15-Year Cooperation Agreement; Facility Will Test BE-7 In Simulated Space Environments; New 10,000 Pound Thrust Engine Is Designed For In-Space Applications Including The Blue Moon Lunar Lander; Blue Origin “O’Neill Building” Headquarters In Kent, Washington, Features Blue Moon Mockup Along With Science Fiction Spaceships; Blue Origin Hiring Engineers To Compete For NASA Lunar Contracts

Credits: Blue Origin, Air Force Research Lab

Tuesday / 28 January 2020

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TRAILER Robotic System Under Development By ESA For South Poles Of Earth And Moon

ESA Technology Development Element Program Contracts With French COMEX Company And Vienna-Based Liquifer Systems Group, Directed By Barbara Imhof, To Develop TRAILER Robotic System; Two Robots, The Highly Mobile TRACTOR And Trailer Unit WAIN, Will Be Controllable From Earth Or Lunar Orbit; Rovers Will Be Tested In Antarctica By 2021 For Eventual Use In South Pole-Aitken Basin Of Moon; ESA Also Developing HERACLES Lander To Place Payloads Supporting Humans On Lunar Surface

Credits: Liquifer Systems, Moon Village Association,  ESA

Friday / 24 January 2020

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Commercial Lunar Services Providers To Carry Payloads Aiding Astronomy And Lunar Science

NASA Finalizes 16 Experiments And Technology Demonstrations To Fly With Commercial Lunar Services Providers; Astrobotic Peregrine Lander (L) Will Carry 11 Payloads Using ULA Vulcan Launcher Including PROSPECT Ion-Trap Mass Spectrometer (C); Intuitive Machines Will Launch Nova-C Lander (R) With 5 Payloads On SpaceX Falcon 9; Radio Observations Lunar Surface (ROLSES) Low-Frequency Experiment On Nova-C Will Test Feasibility Of Large Radio Telescopes On Lunar Surface; Both Landers Will Carry Laser Retro-Reflector Arrays To Aid Navigation

Credits: NASA

Weekend Edition
Fri-Mon / 10-13 Jan 2020

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International Moon Landings 2020-2021 Begin Lunar Decade

Multiple Nations And Commercial Enterprises Prepare For Landings In First Years Of Lunar Decade; India Proceeding At Full Speed With Chandrayaan-3 (BR) For November 2020; China (Zhongguo) Plans Chang’e-5 (TR) NLT Dec 2020; NASA Commercial Lunar Services Providers Astrobotic And Intuitive Machines (L) Both Plan Landings NET July 2021; Chang’e-6 And Chang’e-7 Planned For Near Future; Chandrayaan-4 May Follow In Cooperation With JAXA, And Possibly Chandrayaan-5; SpaceX And Blue Origin (C) Also Plan To Land Payloads In Early 2020s

Credits: NASA, Blue Origin, CNSA, ISRO

New Year 2020 Edition
Fri-Tues / 20 Dec 2019 – 7 Jan 2020

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Artemis Moon Generation:
Multi-Partisan, International, Entrepreneurial

NASA Gains Funding In Bipartisan Budget For Space Launch System, Exploration Upper Stage, And Artemis Lunar Lander For First Women On The Moon In 2024; Private Companies Are Participating In Commercial Crew, Cargo, And Lunar Landers; Canada Supplying Robotic Arm For Lunar Orbit; JAXA Contributing Habitation Modules And Lunar Rover; ESA Partners Agree To Greatly Increased Budget And Providing Orion Service Modules For Artemis 1-4; Cooperation Possible From India, Russia, Crescent Moon Countries And Zhongguo (China)

Credits: NASA, ESA, CSA / CAS

Friday / 20 December 2019

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Chandrayaan-3 Planning Rush To Lunar Surface In 2020

Indian Space Research Organization Planning Chandrayaan-3 At Full Speed For November 2020 Launch; Mission Will Include Propulsion Module, Lander And Rover; 682-Kg Chandrayaan-2 Orbiter Is Successfully Operating In Lunar Polar Orbit; Orbiter High Resolution Camera And Onboard Terrain Mapping Camera-2 Will Be Part Of Chandrayaan-3 Mission, Which Will Likely Land In South Pole Region; India Partnering With Japan On Joint Lunar Polar Exploration Mission, Which Could Become Chandrayaan-4

Credits: ISRO

Tuesday / 19 November 2019

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Peregrine Lander To Carry Lunar Rovers In 2021

Astrobotic, One Of Nine NASA Commercial Lunar Services Providers, Aims To Place Peregrine Lander On Moon In 2021; First USA Lunar Landing In 49 Years Will Be Launched On Upcoming United Launch Alliance Vulcan Centaur Booster; Astrobotic Receives US$2M Tipping Point Award To Develop Small CubeRover; UK-Based Spacebit, Founded By Pavlo Tanasyuk, Plans To Send 10-cm Tall 4-Legged Rover Capable Of Exploring Lunar Caves; NASA Announces Additional CLPS Providers Blue Origin, Ceres Robotics, Sierra Nevada Aerospace, SpaceX, And Tyvak In Monday Teleconference

Credits: Astrobotic, Spacebit, ULA

Weekend Edition
Fri-Mon / 15-18 November 2019

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Chandryaan-3: India Reportedly Sets November 2020 Goal For Landing Near Moon South Pole

ISRO Second Effort At Soft Landing On Surface Of Moon In Late 2020; Chandrayaan-3 To Be Configured With Detachable Propulsion Module, Lander And Rover; Chandrayaan-2 Orbiter Currently Functioning And Imaging With Onboard Terrain Mapping Camera-2 And Orbiter’s High-Resolution Camera From ~100-km Elevation; Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre Head V Narayanan (R) Leads Inquiry Into Chandrayaan-2 Lander Failure; Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre Director S Somanath (L) Leads Chandrayaan-3 Planning Committee

Credits: ISRO, NASA

Friday / 15 November 2019

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Pence At NASA Ames Applauds Artemis Progress

USA Vice President Mike Pence Says “Artemis Is Here To Stay” At NASA Ames Research Center In California 14 November, Promises NASA Administrator Bridenstine The Resources Needed; Space Launch System And Orion Spacecraft Being Tested For Projected Late 2020 Artemis-1 Mission; Boeing, And Blue Origin Team (With Lockheed Martin And Northrop Grumman) Both Submit Proposals For Artemis Human Lunar Lander; Pence Practices On Vertical Motion Simulator Expected To Be Used For Lunar Landings

Credits: NASA