2024-07-22 12:07:28
NASA is investing a lot of money in exploring the moon. A program created specifically for this purpose has been driving this forward since 2017. Now there has been a setback.
The US space agency NASA will not be sending a robot to the moon after all. After “extensive internal review”, the project called “Viper” (Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover) will be terminated, NASA announced at a press conference. The space agency cited the increase in costs that has already occurred and may continue to occur in the future, as well as the delay in the launch date, as reasons for this.
The rover, which was already largely built, was actually supposed to land on the moon in 2022. A launch towards the end of this year was then planned. Most recently, NASA had assumed September 2025. The “Viper” robot was supposed to roll around the south pole of the moon and take soil samples with a drill. The launch was supposed to take place with the help of the private space company Astrobotic.
The rover will now be dismantled and the parts used elsewhere, NASA said. “Our path forward will maximize the technology and work that went into Viper, while preserving important funds to support our robust lunar portfolio,” said NASA manager Nicola Fox.
The rover was originally built to search for ice and other potential resources on the Moon and was intended to help further the exploration of the Moon, to which the space agency has dedicated a separate program.
With the “Artemis” program, named after the Greek goddess of the moon, NASA wants to bring humans back to the moon for the first time in more than half a century – including the first non-human white People and the first woman. The long-term goal of “Artemis” is to establish a permanent lunar base as a basis for missions to Mars.
However, NASA had to postpone the manned lunar orbit “Artemis 2”, originally planned for November 2024, to September 2025 due to problems with the rocket and spacecraft, and the planned manned lunar landing “Artemis 3” to September 2026. There is competitive pressure from China, which wants to bring people to the moon by 2030.