As SpaceX’s Starship test program continues to gain momentum, the company has signed a second commercial contract to deliver payloads to the moon using a lunar lander variant of the large vehicle.
The Colorado-based company said Starship will send Lunar Outpost’s rugged rover, called Eagle, to the lunar surface by 2029. Lunar Outpost CEO Justin Cyrus declined to provide other details about the mission, including whether it will be a private flight or part of a ride-share or the cost. It is also unclear how Starship will actually transport the rover, which looks like a small pickup truck, from inside the vehicle to the ground.
Lunar Outpost’s rover ambitions received a major boost from NASA earlier this year when the agency selected the rover, along with two other teams, for the initial phase of its Lunar Terrain Vehicle (LTV) program. The three teams were selected for a one-year contract to advance the rover concept for potential use by astronauts under NASA’s Artemis program. The 12-month period concludes with a competitive request for follow-up proposals, where three companies will compete for pilot work orders.
LTV programs are potentially very profitable. The total potential value of the work orders over the next 13 years is $4.6 billion, but the agency said it is choosing only a single provider due to budgetary concerns.
Cyrus said the company plans to proceed with rover development even if the team led by Luna Outpost, which includes Leidos, General Motors, Goodyear and MDA Space, is not selected by NASA.
“The Lunar Outpost Eagle is our flagship vehicle and will be the backbone of our outposts on other planets,” he said in an emailed statement. “Our company has been focused on mobility since our founding, and our Lunar Terrain Vehicle accelerates our industry-leading capabilities to secure a sustainable presence on the Moon and Mars.”
The startup also closed a Series A round last month for an undisclosed amount to support several initiatives, including rover development.
The new contract for Starship cargo delivery follows a similar contract signed by SpaceX last year to deliver a rover to the lunar surface with Venturi Astrolab, which is leading the team selected under the LTV program.
