The Moon Base will be established in three phases with the help of private contracts that include some of the bigwigs in the aerospace domain.
Set to launch this fall, 2026, in the first of three moon base missions, NASA has awarded Jeff Bezos-led Blue Origin the deal for lunar landers.
Blue Origin's Blue Moon MK1 recently passed a significant vacuum test at NASA Johnson Space Center's Chamber A.
pic.twitter.com/lPQPedXql0 — NASA (@NASA) May 26, 2026Did NASA snub Elon Musk-led SpaceX for the lunar lander mission?
See Also: Artemis Mission: Blue Origin's Blue Moon Mark 1 Lander Clears This Key Test In NASA Vacuum Chamber
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After the historic lunar flyby with the Artemis II mission, NASA is gearing up to establish lunar permanence on the Moon, i.e., a permanent settlement on the only natural satellite tagging along Earth. The Moon Base will be established in three phases with the help of private contracts that include some of the bigwigs in the aerospace domain. Set to launch this fall, 2026, in the first of three moon base missions, NASA has awarded Jeff Bezos-led Blue Origin the deal for lunar landers. Blue Origin's Blue Moon MK1 recently passed a significant vacuum test at NASA Johnson Space Center's Chamber A.
Reacting to the missionassignment,t Blue Origin took to the socials and remarked.
Lunar Permanence is only possible with recurring access to the Moon, and it starts this year. Proud to support @NASAMoonBase at the lunar South Pole with our Blue Moon MK1 vehicles delivering high-cadence, low-cost access—MK1-101 Endurance (Moon Base 1), followed by MK1-102 VIPER, and two additional MK1 missions supporting Lunar Terrain Vehicles (LTVs).
“Congratulations @BlueOrigin and we are looking forward to this partnership to deliver the first lunar terrain vehicle (LTV) as part of @NASAMoonBase program.”
Moon Base program executive Carlos García-Galán congratulates the recipient of the LTV delivery award. pic.twitter.com/lPQPedXql0 — NASA (@NASA) May 26, 2026
Did NASA snub Elon Musk-led SpaceX for the lunar lander mission? Responding to the query by a user on X/Twitter, NASA’s administrator Jared Isaacman wrote
Phase 1 of the @NASAMoonBase strategy is all the “Science of Survival.” These were the first few awards of what will be dozens. We want a lot of small, lower-cost missions, lots of landers, and rovers to figure out what works and what doesn’t in that incredibly harsh environment. It has been more than half a century since we were on the Moon—we don’t want to rush into decisions on surface mobility, comms, power, or navigation.
Isaacman further added
Phase 2 and 3 are where the heavy-lift capabilities, like a Starship and others come in, putting lots of mass efficiently on the Moon for the serious habitation and logistic requirements.
Phase 1 of the @NASAMoonBase strategy is all the “Science of Survival.” These were the first few awards of what will be dozens. We want a lot of small, lower cost missions, lots of landers, and rovers to figure out what works and what doesn’t in that incredibly harsh environment.… — NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman (@NASAAdmin) May 27, 2026
Meanwhile, one user lamented
No one born after 1935 has walked on the Moon.
Reacting to the tweet, Isaacman assured
an unreasonably long wait, but we are fixing this.
See Also: Artemis Mission: Blue Origin's Blue Moon Mark 1 Lander Clears This Key Test In NASA Vacuum Chamber
