Firefly Aerospace to Deliver Scientific Instruments to Moon’s Gruithuisen Domes for NASA

Firefly Aerospace will launch six scientific experiments and technology demonstrations on the lunar surface for NASA. The Cedar Park, Texas-based company secured a $179 million contract under the Commercial Lunar Payload Services initiative, which tasks American companies to conduct space missions in support of the Artemis campaign, NASA said Wednesday.

The payloads will be delivered in the Gruithuisen Domes located on the near side of the Moon in 2028. 

“As NASA prepares for future human exploration of the Moon, the CLPS initiative continues to support a growing lunar economy with American companies,” commented Joel Kearns, deputy associate administrator for exploration for the Science Mission Directorate at the NASA Headquarters. 

The contract is Firefly’s fourth NASA CLPS award.

NASA to Study Gruithuisen Domes

The payloads’ landing site is of particular interest to the space agency. The Gruithuisen Domes is suspected to be an area where magma rich in silica, a material similar in composition to granite, once flowed. 

On Earth, silicic volcanoes form due to plate tectonics and oceans – two things that are absent on the surface of the Moon. Scientists also observed using data from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter that the Gruithuisen Domes are distinctly different from neighboring areas that were formed through the flow of basaltic lavas. 

“Understanding the formation of the Gruithuisen Domes, as well as the ancient lava flows surrounding the landing site, will help the U.S. answer important questions about the lunar surface,” explained Kearns. 

Firefly’s 2028 Flight

The instruments that Firefly Aerospace will deliver to the Moon in 2028 will collectively weigh about 215 pounds. Each will contribute toward a better understanding of the Gruithuisen Domes and support NASA’s plan to establish a lasting human presence on the Moon.

The experiments and technologies bound for the lunar surface are:

• Lunar Vulkan Imaging and Spectroscopy Explorer
• Low-frequency Radio Observations from the Near Side Lunar Surface
• Sample Acquisition, Morphology Filtering, and Probing of Lunar Regolith robotic arm
• Photovoltaic Investigation on the Lunar Surface
• Neutron Measurements at the Lunar Surface spectrometer
• Heimdall flexible camera system

Firefly Aerospace will also provide roving services for some of the scientific instruments following their arrival to the Moon.