Washington, D.C. – On May 19, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, applauded NASA’s announcement that Blue Origin of Kent, Washington, has been selected to develop a human landing system for NASA’s Artemis V mission to the Moon. Through Artemis, NASA will explore more of the Moon than ever before, uncovering more scientific discoveries, and preparing for future astronaut missions to Mars.
“This is great news for Washington state and our growing aerospace industry,” said Senator Murray. “Our state has long been a leader in aerospace innovation and played a key role in so many of our nation’s milestones in space — so it’s fitting that Kent’s own Blue Origin was chosen to develop a human landing system for NASA’s Artemis V mission. Space exploration is not only about pushing the frontiers of innovation and discovery, but about inspiring our next generation to discover what’s possible—and I couldn’t be more excited for this mission. As Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, I will do everything I can to support investments in innovation right here in Washington state.”
Blue Origin will design, develop, test, and verify its Blue Moon lander to meet NASA’s human landing system requirements for recurring astronaut expeditions to the lunar surface, including docking with Gateway, a space station where crew transfer in lunar orbit, and, specific to the Artemis V mission, exploration of the Moon’s South Pole region. In addition to design and development work, the contract includes one uncrewed demonstration mission to the lunar surface before a crewed demo on the Artemis V mission in 2029. The total award value of the firm-fixed price contract is $3.4 billion. NASA previously contracted SpaceX to demonstrate an initial human landing system for the Artemis III mission.
Adding another human landing system partner to NASA’s Artemis program will increase competition, reduce costs to taxpayers, support a regular cadence of lunar landings, further invest in the lunar economy, and help NASA achieve its goals on and around the Moon in preparation for future astronaut missions to Mars.
Through Artemis, NASA will send astronauts – including the first woman and first person of color – to explore the Moon for scientific discovery, economic benefits, and to build the foundation for crewed missions to Mars. Together, the Space Launch System rocket, Orion, Gateway, advanced spacesuits, and human landing systems are NASA’s foundation for deep space exploration.
Original source can be found here.
