The United States National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has officially announced its plan for constructing a lunar base, beginning with a series of three uncrewed robotic missions aimed at progressively establishing a long-term human presence facility at the Moon's south pole.

During a briefing held at its Washington headquarters on Tuesday, NASA detailed the arrangements for the first three phases of the lunar base initiative and announced a series of commercial contracts. Blue Origin, founded by Jeff Bezos, has been selected to undertake the initial lunar base mission, securing a base contract valued at $188 million with an additional $280.4 million in optional task orders.

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman stated at the event that the lunar base will serve as "America's and humanity's first outpost on another celestial body," emphasizing that the mission's goal is to master the skills necessary for survival and operations in extreme environments.

This announcement marks a shift in NASA's Artemis program focus from a singular lunar landing to establishing a permanent human presence capability at the lunar south pole.

Concurrently, NASA announced the cancellation of the previously planned Lunar Gateway orbital space station and has allocated over $439 million in contract funding for lunar rover development. Additionally, NASA disclosed plans for a nuclear-powered spacecraft intended for Mars missions.

Blue Origin's Blue Moon Mark 1 Endurance lander has been selected to execute the "Lunar Base One" mission, with a target launch date no earlier than the fall of 2026. This represents the first official mission under NASA's lunar base plan. According to the contract terms, Blue Origin will receive the $188 million base contract along with the $280.4 million in optional task orders. The Endurance lander has reportedly completed recent related tests with NASA.

Observations suggest Blue Origin's growing role within NASA's Artemis program may influence the related functions of SpaceX.

The first three lunar base missions announced by NASA are all uncrewed robotic missions, designed to mitigate operational risks, test critical technologies, and prepare for subsequent long-term astronaut stays on the lunar surface.

* Lunar Base One: Scheduled for launch in the fall of 2026, it will utilize Blue Origin's Endurance lander to deliver scientific instruments to the Shackleton Connecting Ridge near the lunar south pole. The mission will test the landing system, study the interaction between spacecraft thrusters and lunar dust, and carry a laser retroreflector array to aid in precise orbital spacecraft positioning. * Lunar Base Two: Also targeting a launch later this year, it will be executed by the Griffin lander from Pittsburgh-based Astrobotic. The mission will transport over 1,100 pounds of cargo to the lunar surface, including the FLIP rover from Astrolab, to validate mobility systems for future crewed lunar rovers. * Lunar Base Three: This mission will carry the "Lunar Vertex" science payload, delivered by Intuitive Machines' Nova-C Trinity lander. It will study lunar swirls—anomalously bright patterns on the Moon's surface related to magnetic fields and space weathering—and will also host payloads from the European Space Agency and the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute.

NASA simultaneously announced significant investment in the next-generation Lunar Terrain Vehicle, awarding contracts totaling over $439 million to two companies.

* Hawthorne-based Astrolab received a $219 million contract to develop the CLV-1 crewed lunar rover. Based on the company's FLEX architecture, this rover is designed to transport astronauts, carry cargo, and support remote operations in complex terrain. * Golden-based Lunar Outpost received a $220 million contract to develop the Pegasus lunar rover, a lighter vehicle supporting autonomous, manual, or remote driving modes.

NASA also provided updates on the MoonFall mission. This mission plans to deploy four autonomous "hopper" drones to the lunar surface, which will move in a jumping fashion near the south pole to collect high-resolution terrain imagery, supporting Artemis landing site selection.

MoonFall is being developed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, with Firefly Aerospace providing spacecraft support under a $75 million subcontract. The mission targets a 2028 launch. After the drones complete their final flights, their onboard science instruments are expected to continue operating for several months.

NASA officials indicated that over a dozen additional lunar base missions are expected to be announced later this year, aligning with the schedule to support the planned 2028 Artemis crewed lunar landing.

In this announcement, NASA confirmed the discontinuation of the Lunar Gateway orbital space station project, originally part of the Artemis plan. This station was intended as a transit platform for astronauts descending to the lunar surface and was planned as the first international space station orbiting the Moon.

Meanwhile, NASA announced plans to build and launch the "Space Reactor-1 Freedom" nuclear-powered spacecraft to Mars by 2028 to demonstrate nuclear electric propulsion technology. NASA positions this technology as a critical capability for future deep space exploration, potentially enhancing the speed and efficiency of missions to destinations beyond Jupiter.