Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin has secured a $3.4 billion contract from NASA to develop a crewed lunar lander for the Artemis program, reinforcing the billionaire’s moon aspirations. The momentous project, set to cost over $7 billion, will enable astronauts to return to the lunar surface later this decade.
NASA Administrator Bill Nelson lauded the partnership, expressing excitement about Blue Origin’s significant financial commitment to the project, which exceeds the contract’s value. Nelson believes the collaboration will lay the groundwork for eventually landing the first humans on Mars.
The Blue Origin-led consortium, consisting of Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Draper, Astrobotic, and Honeybee Robotics, triumphed over a competing proposal from a team spearheaded by Leidos-owned Dynetics. Leidos has reiterated its dedication to supporting NASA’s lunar exploration efforts.
The Sustaining Lunar Development (SLD) program, which granted this contract, was established following SpaceX’s exclusive Human Landing System (HLS) contract win in 2021. The SLD competition aimed to offer a second chance for companies to participate in NASA’s lunar landing mission under the Artemis program.
Blue Origin’s proposal stood out based on several strengths, such as two uncrewed pathfinder missions scheduled for 2024 and 2025, technological maturity, a capable lunar lander, and a competitive price. Despite Blue Origin’s lawsuit against NASA over the HLS contract, the space agency has opted to collaborate with the company for the SLD program.
Meanwhile, SpaceX continues to develop its Starship rocket for Artemis missions, having received an additional $1.15 billion award under the HLS program last year. The total value of SpaceX’s HLS contract now amounts to $4.2 billion through 2027, with around $1.8 billion already disbursed to the company, as per federal records.
