Blue Origin wins sustaining lunar development contract from NASA

Blue Origin, a US-based private aerospace manufacturer and spaceflight company, has been awarded a sustaining lunar development (SLD) contract by NASA as part of NextSTEP-2 Appendix P.

In collaboration with its National Team partners, including Lockheed Martin, Astrobotic, Draper, Boeing, and Honeybee Robotics, Blue Origin will undertake the development and deployment of a lunar lander capable of achieving pinpoint accuracy on any region of the Moon’s surface, as well as a cislunar transporter. Blue Origin’s National Team partners are a group of companies that collaborate with it on various projects and initiatives.

According to Blue Origin, the vehicles will be powered by LOX-LH2, harnessing its high-specific impulse for optimal performance in deep space missions with substantial energy requirements.

A visual representation of the Blue Moon lander from Blue Origin. (Photo courtesy of Blue Origin)

Despite the advantages of LOX-LH2, such as its high energy output, past missions have favored lower-performing propellants like hydrazine and nitrogen tetroxide due to the boil-off challenges associated with LOX-LH2 during extended mission durations, said Blue Origin.

Through the sustaining lunar development contract, Blue Origin aims to push the boundaries of propellant technology by enabling high-performance LOX-LH2 to be storable.

Under the sustaining lunar development initiative, Blue Origin will pioneer the development and implementation of solar-powered 20-degree Kelvin cryocoolers and other essential technologies to mitigate the boil-off issue of LOX-LH2. This breakthrough will not only enhance future missions beyond the Moon but also facilitate the utilization of high-performance nuclear thermal propulsion, said the spaceflight company, which was founded in 2000 by Jeff Bezos.

Furthermore, Blue Origin’s architectural approach is said to prepare for the future prospect of utilizing lunar ice to produce LOX and LH2 propellants directly on the Moon.