WASHINGTON / RankWire.AI / – On Tuesday, October 20, NASA provided an update on its initiatives to create both crewed and robotic lunar vehicles aimed at facilitating exploration and establishing a permanent Moon base. The agency shared progress through a Moon Base video, highlighting the development of the VIPER robotic rover alongside new terrain vehicles designed for astronauts. Robert Pickle, who oversees the Surface Mobility Office within NASA’s Moon Base Program, emphasized that lunar rovers are vital components of the agency’s surface mobility strategy.
Set for launch in 2027, NASA’s Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover will explore the lunar South Pole region. Its mission is to examine permanently shadowed craters in search of water and other resources critical for supporting upcoming missions. The VIPER will be delivered to the Moon’s surface by Blue Origin’s Blue Moon Mark 1 lander. Designed to traverse more than 30 kilometers, the rover will gather data on temperature, lighting, and terrain conditions.
Constructed entirely at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, VIPER is nearing completion of final testing before being shipped to Kennedy Space Center for launch. Mission control will be operated from NASA’s Ames Research Center in California. In September 2025, NASA awarded Blue Origin a contract worth up to $190 million under the Commercial Lunar Payload Services program to deliver the rover. The planned mission duration is 100 days, with findings that could inform future lunar water resource utilization.
Terrain vehicles designed to carry astronauts
To enhance surface mobility, NASA has commissioned Astrolab and Lunar Outpost to develop lunar terrain vehicles, or LTVs. These vehicles will facilitate crew transport, equipment movement, and sample collection. Astrolab’s CLV-1 is based on its FLEX rover platform, while Lunar Outpost’s Pegasus is a lighter evolution of its Eagle model. Both firms aim to deliver operational hardware to NASA by the end of 2027. Additionally, NASA awarded Blue Origin a task order to deliver the LTVs to the lunar South Pole region by 2028.
The LTVs are scheduled to arrive on the Moon prior to crewed Artemis missions. They can be operated remotely from Earth, allowing surface mapping before astronauts land, with the capability to cover up to 6 kilometers daily. Each vehicle can travel approximately 10 kilometers on a single battery charge and support up to three moonwalks per Artemis mission. Capable of carrying 80 kilograms of lunar samples and tools, they are engineered to survive in shadowed regions with temperatures as low as minus 203 degrees Celsius.
Upcoming test missions and design evaluations
Both companies are progressing through critical design review phases. Lunar Outpost’s preliminary design review was scheduled for October, and Astrolab’s is set for the end of December. Astrolab has also provided a CLV-1 mockup to Axiom Space for astronaut assessments. Meanwhile, Lunar Outpost has built two mockups and delivered a third static model to Johnson Space Center. The FLIP rover from Astrolab will participate in Griffin Mission One in late 2026, with a second Lunar Outpost MAPP rover launching in early 2027.
These rover initiatives build on NASA’s renewed focus on deep space exploration with crewed missions. The Artemis II mission set a record for the farthest human spaceflight in April. Blue Origin intends to launch its Blue Moon landers aboard the New Glenn rocket. NASA states that these vehicles will assist astronauts in exploring geologically diverse lunar regions. The rovers are integral to plans for establishing a sustained human presence on the Moon.