Earth–Moon System & Cislunar Activity

Orbital visualization and research overview

FACT SHEET: NASA Unveils Transformative Initiatives to Achieve America’s National Space Policy

Igniting Golden Age of Exploration, Innovation

  • NASA is aligning agencywide initiatives to achieve President Donald J. Trump’s National Space Policy and advance American leadership in space (Space & Defense, 2026).
  • Actions announced at NASA's "Ignition" event prioritize the Artemis program launch cadence, the creation of a Moon Base, and space nuclear power and propulsion to deliver on the agency’s mission with urgency (Space & Defense, 2026).

Going Back to the Moon: Artemis, Architecture Updates

  • Artemis cadence: The announcements build on recently outlined updates to the Artemis program, including standardizing the SLS (Space Launch System) rocket configuration, adding an additional mission in 2027, and undertaking at least one surface landing every year thereafter to incrementally reduce risk and increase safety (Lori Glaze, 2026).
  • Artemis III (2027): Reconfigured as a focused test mission in Earth orbit to dock with one or both lunar landing systems and validate integrated systems and operations in advance of subsequent landing attempts (Lori Glaze, 2026).
  • Artemis IV and V (2028): Target timeframe for the official execution and completion of crewed lunar surface landings (Lori Glaze, 2026).
  • Post–Artemis V: Increasing use of commercially procured, reusable hardware to support frequent and affordable crewed lunar surface missions, initially targeting landings every six months, with cadence rising as capabilities mature (SAM.gov, 2026).
  • NASA intends to pause Gateway in its current form and shift focus directly to surface infrastructure that enables sustained operations (Space & Defense, 2026). Applicable equipment will be repurposed, and international partner commitments leveraged to meet objectives.
  • Near-term acquisitions: NASA announced multiple Request for Information (RFI) and draft Request for Proposals (RFP) to accelerate progress toward national cislunar and surface objectives (SAM.gov, 2026).

Building the Moon Base: Three Phases

Phase One: Build, Test, and Learn

  • Shift from unique, infrequent missions to a repeatable, modular surface approach (Jeff Foust, 2025).
  • Use of the CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative and initial LTV (Lunar Terrain Vehicle) frameworks to heavily scale up the cadence and tempo of lunar surface activity (Space & Defense, 2026).
  • Advance tactical mobility, surface power generation, localized communications, navigation, and a broad spectrum of early scientific investigations (SAM.gov, 2026).

Phase Two: Establish Early Infrastructure

  • Transition to semi-habitable infrastructure assets and regular logistical delivery lines supporting recurring astronaut operations (Jeff Foust, 2025).
  • Integrate major international contributions, including JAXA’s (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) pressurized rover, along with partner scientific payloads, rovers, and transportation capabilities (Space & Defense, 2026).

Phase Three: Enable Continuous Human Presence

  • As heavy cargo-capable human landing systems (HLS) come online, deliver the permanent infrastructure elements needed for continuous long-duration presence on the lunar base (SAM.gov, 2026).
  • Include ASI’s (Italian Space Agency) Multipurpose Habitats (MPH), CSA’s (Canadian Space Agency) Lunar Utility Vehicle, and expanded commercial opportunities for habitation, surface mobility, and logistics (Carlos Garcia-Galan, 2026).

Near-Term Infrastructure & Mobility Deployment Schedule

  • Moon Base I (No Earlier Than Fall 2026): Deploys Blue Origin’s Blue Moon Mark 1 Endurance lander to the Shackleton Connecting Ridge to deliver NASA payloads evaluating rocket plume surface interactions and establish a laser retroreflector array to de-risk 2028 crewed landings (Space & Defense, 2026).
  • Moon Base II (Late 2026): Astrobotic’s Griffin lander will deliver over 1,100 pounds of surface cargo, including Astrolab’s FLIP rover, to gather operational parameters for future heavy lunar terrain vehicles (Space & Defense, 2026).
  • Moon Base III (Late 2026): Intuitive Machines’ Nova-C Trinity lander will deliver the Lunar Vertex suite to study lunar swirls, co-manifesting secondary international surface assets from the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute (Space & Defense, 2026).
  • Lunar Terrain Vehicle (LTV) Services: Performance-based task orders have been awarded to Astrolab ($219M) for the 2,000-pound Crewed Lunar Vehicle (CLV-1) and Lunar Outpost ($220M) for the Pegasus rover to establish crewed and uncrewed mobility assets on the surface by 2028 (Space & Defense, 2026). Blue Origin was awarded $188M to provide the heavy cargo landers required for delivery (Space & Defense, 2026).
  • MoonFall Mission (2028): NASA will deploy four specialized tactical hopper drones developed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory to execute short flights mapping potential Artemis landing sites, utilizing a transport vehicle built by Firefly Aerospace (Space & Defense, 2026).

CLPS 2.0 and Long-Term Cislunar Logistics

  • Contract Evolution: As original CLPS contracts approach expiration in 2028, NASA's active CLPS 2.0 market solicitation governs follow-on end-to-end integration, launch, and cislunar transport services (SAM.gov, 2026).
  • Advanced Technical Capabilities: Future commercial mandates outline requirements for safely integrating, launching, and transporting radioactive payloads, such as Radioisotope Heater Units (RHUs) to survive extended operations within permanently shadowed regions (PSRs), as well as implementing integrated ascent stages for 2 kg mass commercial sample returns (SAM.gov, 2026).
  • Supply Chain Stabilization: To drive down commercial delivery constraints, industry executives are recommending that NASA pursue "block buys" of landers to optimize domestic supply chains, maximize cost-efficiency, and stabilize launch manifests (Jeff Foust, 2025).

References