Lunar Outpost Joins Lockheed Martin’s Consortium to Develop First Crewed Rover in Over 50 Years
18 April 2023
Lunar Outpost has partnered with Lockheed Martin to contribute technology and engineering expertise in the development of Lockheed Martin’s Lunar Mobility Vehicle (LMV). This next generation lunar terrain vehicle will give astronauts a front row seat to discoveries as they traverse unexplored regions of the Moon.
The Lockheed Martin-led team will be strengthened by Lunar Outpost’s mission heritage and rapid innovation and prototyping practices in end-to-end rover development and operations expertise. Lunar Outpost will be providing Stargate, a comprehensive mission control software for robotic vehicle teleoperation, data management and payload operations. In addition to leading this key role, Lunar Outpost will be contributing to the vehicle’s onboard navigation, advanced thermal management, lighting and dust mitigation technologies – creating a safe and efficient vehicle for Artemis astronaut exploration.
In 2025, the Artemis program will return U.S. astronauts to the surface of the Moon for the first time since the Apollo 17 mission in 1972. The addition of a crewed lunar rover to this mission will extend human mobility further than ever before across harsh lunar terrain.
Astronauts will use the vehicle to conduct critical scientific research and prospect for resources – offering opportunity and insight into fundamental aspects of the solar system. The LMV rover will also be operated autonomously without astronauts on board. Early rover missions will target the Moon’s South Pole, a previously unexplored region thought to have an abundance of water ice and other resources. Uncovering these resources would unlock the ability to build and maintain life support mechanisms for a sustained human presence on the Moon and beyond.
It has been over 50 years since the U.S. last visited the lunar surface, but Lunar Outpost is looking to change that sooner than most think.
“We have secured three missions to the Moon over the next three years and have flight-ready technology to execute those missions and perform numerous tasks including prospecting for resources,” said Justin Cyrus, CEO at Lunar Outpost, “We are excited to support Lockheed Martin’s LMV program with critical rover technologies that will have been demonstrated, tested, and operated multiple times on the lunar surface”.
Lunar Outpost’s three autonomous lunar rover missions include infrastructure, science, and resource prospecting activities - one of which will be the first ever rover to visit the lunar South Pole later this year as well as the first rover to ever collect and sell space resources through a deal with NASA. This mission will also serve as a scouting mission for Artemis astronauts. These missions all occur before the crewed lunar terrain vehicle is expected to be delivered to the surface on the Artemis mission. They bring the opportunity to test LTV software and technology on the lunar surface before deploying it on the human-rated vehicle.
In this consortium, Lunar Outpost joins the likes of General Motors, Goodyear and MDA. Together with Lockheed Martin, the consortium will use their strength in engineering and their innovative technologies to contribute to the expansion of space exploration and research. At the same time, Lunar Outpost is continuously working to apply these technologies as sustainable solutions for the benefit of Earth and humankind.