NASA's ice searching moon rover has been put on ice, but its Pittsburgh connection isn't completely frozen.
The rover, the Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Project (VIPER), was originally set to be ferried by North Shore-based Astrobotic Technology Inc.'s Griffin Lander in late 2023. NASA initially awarded Astrobotic a $199.5 million contract in 2020 to transport the lander as part of its Commercial Lunar Payload Service. In 2022 NASA delayed the launch to late 2024 to "provide more time for preflight testing of the Astrobotic lander" and awarded an additional $67.8 million for the mandated testing. Now, however, NASA has cancelled the project, citing an "increased cost that threatens cancellation or disruption to other CLPS missions."
Despite no rover to transport, Astrobotic's mission is not cancelled.
"Astrobotic remains committed to flying our Griffin Mission One to the moon as soon as possible," John Thornton, Astrobotic CEO said in a prepared statement. "Although the Griffin lander was optimized to fly NASA's VIPER, we are engaging in conversations with multiple customers about different payloads to fly on Griffin."
The company has researched and invested "heavily" in an experimental lunar power grid service, named LunaGrid. Thornton indicated that "one possibility [Astrobotic is] looking at closely is a LunaGrid-related demonstration mission."
"We're also soliciting and reviewing new payload proposals," Thornton said in a prepared statement. "The decisions must be made quickly, but we're considering all options."
Griffin Mission One will be Astrobotic's second launch. The first, Peregrine Mission One failed to make contact with the moon earlier this year due to a propulsion issue caused by a fuel leak.
