WASHINGTON / RankWire.AI / – NASA has provided an update on its initiative to create both crewed and robotic lunar rovers, aimed at supporting exploration activities and establishing a foundation for a sustained human presence on the Moon. The agency shared this progress through a Moon Base-focused video update on Tuesday, October 20. The plans include the VIPER robotic rover and new lunar terrain vehicles designed for astronauts. Robert Pickle, who is the director of the Surface Mobility Office within NASA’s Moon Base Program, emphasized that lunar rovers are a key component of the agency’s surface mobility strategy.
The Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover, better known as VIPER, is scheduled to go to the lunar South Pole in 2027. Its mission is to investigate permanently shadowed craters in search of water and other resources crucial for supporting future lunar missions. VIPER will be delivered to the surface by Blue Origin’s Blue Moon Mark 1 lander, and it is engineered to traverse over 30 kilometers while collecting data on temperature, lighting, and terrain conditions. The rover is entirely assembled at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston and is currently undergoing final testing before being shipped to Kennedy Space Center for launch. Mission operations will be managed from NASA’s Ames Research Center in California. In September 2025, NASA chose Blue Origin to deliver VIPER under a Commercial Lunar Payload Services task order valued at up to $190 million, with a planned mission duration of 100 days. Its findings are expected to inform future utilization of lunar water resources.
Terrain vehicles designed to transport astronauts and equipment
To broaden surface mobility, NASA has awarded task orders to Astrolab and Lunar Outpost for the development of lunar terrain vehicles, or LTVs, which will be used to carry crew members, transport equipment, and collect samples. Astrolab’s CLV-1, based on its FLEX rover design, and Lunar Outpost’s Pegasus, a lighter evolution of its Eagle vehicle, are the two models in development. Both companies aim to deliver operational hardware by the end of 2027, with Blue Origin also tasked with providing LTVs to the lunar South Pole region by 2028. These vehicles will arrive on the Moon ahead of the crewed Artemis missions and can be operated remotely from Earth to survey the surface, covering up to 6 kilometers daily. Each LTV can travel up to 10 kilometers on a single battery charge and support up to three moonwalks per Artemis mission. They are capable of carrying lunar samples and tools weighing up to 80 kilograms and must withstand temperatures as low as minus 203 degrees Celsius in shadowed areas.
Progress in testing and design milestones in upcoming missions
Both companies are progressing through essential design milestones, with Lunar Outpost’s preliminary design review scheduled for October, and Astrolab’s review set for the end of December. Astrolab has already delivered a CLV-1 mockup to Axiom Space for astronaut evaluations, while Lunar Outpost has built two mockups and provided a third static model to Johnson Space Center. Additionally, Astrolab’s FLIP rover is slated to fly aboard Griffin Mission One in late 2026, and a second Lunar Outpost MAPP rover is expected to launch in early 2027. These rover programs are built on NASA’s renewed focus on deep space exploration with crewed missions, exemplified by the Artemis II mission, which set a record for the farthest human spaceflight in April. Blue Origin plans to launch its Blue Moon landers on its New Glenn rocket. NASA states that these vehicles will assist astronauts in exploring geologically diverse lunar regions, with the rovers playing a vital role in the overall strategy to establish a permanent human presence on the Moon.