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# Everything you need to know about NASA CLPS Moon landing missions
- URL: https://jatan.space/nasa-clps-moon-missions/
- Published: 2025-08-04T11:40:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-01-12T11:38:31.000Z
- Description: A look at the armada of robotic landers NASA is riding to the Moon this decade.
- Author: Jatan Mehta
- Tags: Articles, US Artemis, Explore

NASA is [returning humans](https://www.nasa.gov/specials/artemis) to the Moon later in the decade, but a fleet of agency-supported robotic spacecraft will touch down on lunar soil starting this year. With its $2.6 billion [Commercial Lunar Payloads Services](https://www.nasa.gov/content/commercial-lunar-payload-services-overview) (CLPS) initiative, NASA has been [competitively](https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-announces-new-partnerships-for-commercial-lunar-payload-delivery-services) funding commercial companies to build spacecraft that will autonomously land on the Moon, carrying with them the agency’s science and technology payloads to geologically diverse places.

![](https://jatan.space/content/images/2024/02/https-3a-2f-2fbucketeer-e05bbc84-baa3-437e-9518-adb32be77984-s3-amazonaws-com-2fpublic-2fimages-2f9a94265c-73ad-46e6-b36e-2a002c01cbe6_1200x950-jpeg.jpg)

A render of Firefly’s Blue Ghost lander descending on the Moon. [Image: Firefly](https://firefly.com/firefly-aerospace-is-one-step-closer-to-landing-on-the-moon)

## Upcoming CLPS Moon landings

To date, NASA has funded several commercial companies for these CLPS Moon landing missions with the following contract values at the time of their selections:

- **Mission 1, January 8, 2024:** [$79.5 million](https://www.astrobotic.com/astrobotic-awarded-79-5-million-contract-to-deliver-14-nasa-payloads-to-the-moon) contract to Astrobotic
- **Mission 2, February 12, 2024:** [$77 million](https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-selects-first-commercial-moon-landing-services-for-artemis-program) contract to Intuitive Machines
- **Mission 3, Late 2024:** [$47 million](https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-selects-intuitive-machines-to-land-water-measuring-payload-on-the-moon) contract to Intuitive Machines
- **Mission 4, 2024:** [$93.3 million](https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-selects-firefly-aerospace-for-artemis-commercial-moon-delivery-in-2023) contract to Firefly
- **(Cancelled) Mission 5, November 2023:** [$75.9 million](https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-awards-contract-to-deliver-science-tech-to-moon-ahead-of-human-missions) contract to Masten Space
- **(Cancelled) Mission 6, November 2024:** [$226.5 million](https://www.nasa.gov/feature/nasa-rover-to-search-for-water-other-resources-on-moon) contract to Astrobotic (increased to [$320.4 million](https://jatan.space/moon-monday-issue-87/) for extra tests)
- **Mission 7, 2025:** [$77.5 million](https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-selects-intuitive-machines-for-new-lunar-science-delivery) contract to Intuitive Machines
- **Mission 8, 2026:** [$73 million](https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-selects-draper-to-fly-research-to-far-side-of-moon) contract to Draper
- **Mission 9, 2026:** [$112 million](https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-picks-firefly-aerospace-for-robotic-delivery-to-far-side-of-moon) contract to Firefly
- **Mission 10, 2025-26:** [$6.1 million](https://jatan.space/moon-monday-issue-188/#a-clps-contract-for-blue-out-of-the-blue) to Blue Origin
- **Mission 11, 2027:** [$116.9 million contract](https://www.nasa.gov/news-release/nasa-awards-intuitive-machines-lunar-south-pole-research-delivery/) to Intuitive Machines
- **Mission 12, 2028:** [$179 million contract](https://www.nasa.gov/news-release/more-nasa-science-tech-will-fly-to-moon-aboard-future-firefly-flight/) to Firefly
- **Mission 13, 2029:** [$176.7 million contract](https://www.nasa.gov/news-release/nasa-selects-firefly-for-new-artemis-science-tech-delivery-to-moon/) to Firefly

Unlike traditional missions, these CLPS missions are built, operated and managed by their companies, with lower oversight from NASA. The agency primarily dictates preferences for the landing sites, and the instruments it wants onboard.

These missions will also have non-NASA payloads from across the globe, something the agency encourages to spur a commercial lunar ecosystem. All landers on these missions will nominally last a maximum of one lunar day—that is, 14 Earth days—since frigid night time temperatures, well below -100 degrees Celsius, will render the solar- and battery-powered landers non-functional.

### Astrobotic’s first CLPS mission

![](https://jatan.space/content/images/2024/02/https-3a-2f-2fbucketeer-e05bbc84-baa3-437e-9518-adb32be77984-s3-amazonaws-com-2fpublic-2fimages-2f8f9e36c4-a320-4b0f-928a-beed9811da80_1950x1300-jpeg.jpg)

Astrobotic’s first Moon lander, Peregrine. [Image: John Thornton](https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6998697480980676609)

On January 8, 2024, Astrobotic’s lander [launched](https://jatan.space/moon-monday-issue-158/) with the aim of touching down in a lunar lava plain called [Sinus Viscositatis](https://quickmap.lroc.asu.edu/?extent=-43.6314482%2C34.0851306%2C-37.4432437%2C37.5891353&id=lroc&showTerrain=true&queryOpts=N4XyA&layers=NrBsFYBoAZIRnpEBmZcAsjYIHYFcAbAyAbwF8BdC0ypcOKbRFOOZLRfImqnioA&proj=16) just outside the [Gruithuisen volcanic domes](https://jatan.space/unique-volcanic-domes-of-gruithuisen/) on February 23\. The lander carried [15 payloads from 6 countries](https://www.astrobotic.com/lunar-delivery/manifest), including two micro-rovers. As part of NASA’s [CLPS program](https://jatan.space/nasa-clps-moon-missions/), it was also supposed to carry [11 agency-funded instruments](https://www.nasa.gov/feature/first-commercial-moon-delivery-assignments-to-advance-artemis) but [flew only five](https://jatan.space/moon-monday-issue-151/) of them. However, Astrobotic’s lunar lander [failed](https://jatan.space/moon-monday-issue-159/) before it could reach Luna, precluding a lunar descent attempt.

### Intuitive Machines’ first CLPS mission

For [its first CLPS mission](https://www.intuitivemachines.com/im-1) named IM-1 which launched in February 2024, Intuitive Machines carried [six NASA payloads](https://www.nasa.gov/feature/first-commercial-moon-delivery-assignments-to-advance-artemis) to the Moon, attempting a soft landing in the polar [Malapert A crater](https://quickmap.lroc.asu.edu/query?extent=-27.6167293,-80.9725683,9.6287046,-78.2434553&id=lroc&showTerrain=true&queryOpts=N4IgLghgRiBcIgL5A&layers=NrBsFYBoAZIRnpEBmZcAsjYIHYFcAbAyAbwF8BdC0ypOOKbRFdAJgQSfyJqt6XAMYiBCnrIsibsXLVgydAA4AnJNyEZlarIpA&proj=17) at 80°S. There was also a commercial telescope called [ILO-X](https://iloa.org/ilo-x-precursor) from Hawaii-based ILOA [aboard](https://iloa.org/iloa%5Fnews%5Frelease%5Foct%5F4%5F2023). The company [hit a hard-landing](https://jatan.space/moon-monday-issue-165/) on the Moon instead but after which NASA and Intuitive Machines [skewed the success criteria](https://jatan.space/moon-monday-issue-166/) of the mission to claim is as successful.

![](https://jatan.space/content/images/2025/01/intuitive-machines-im-1-lander-on-the-moon-firing-1.jpg)

A dramatic view of the Odysseus lunar lander still firing its main engine after making contact with the Moon. [Image: Intuitive Machines](https://twitter.com/Int%5FMachines/status/1762919217089720716/photo/1)

### Intuitive Machines’ second CLPS mission

**March 2025 update:** [*The spacecraft landed sideways and the mission failed*](https://jatan.space/moon-monday-issue-216/#tipped-intuitive-mooncraft-dies-with-none-of-the-net-130-million-worth-of-payloads-deployed)

On its [second Moon mission](https://jatan.space/moon-monday-issue-189/) in Q1 2025, Intuitive Machines will deliver NASA’s [PRIME-1 drill](https://www.nasa.gov/mission/polar-resources-ice-mining-experiment-1-prime-1) and a mass spectrometer at an [optimum location](https://www.nasa.gov/missions/artemis/clps/nasa-intuitive-machines-announce-landing-site-location-for-lunar-drill) on the Moon’s south pole where underground [water ice](https://jatan.space/ultimate-guide-to-water-on-the-moon/) is expected based on orbital data. The lander will drill up to 1 meter below the surface and analyze the soil for [water ice](https://jatan.space/ultimate-guide-to-water-on-the-moon/), a first such study. The lander will also deploy Lunar Outpost’s [MAPP rover](https://lunaroutpost.com/nokia-and-intuitive-machines-select-lunar-outpost-for-first-rover-mission-at-lunar-south-pole) on the surface to [collect](https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-selects-companies-to-collect-lunar-resources-for-artemis-demonstrations)—but not bring back—lunar soil for NASA and also test Nokia’s [4G/LTE network](https://www.nokia.com/networks/insights/network-on-the-moon) on the Moon. Further, there’s the company’s own [NASA-supported](https://www.nasa.gov/directorates/spacetech/solicitations/tipping%5Fpoints/2020%5Fselections) hopper onboard called [Micro-Nova](https://www.intuitivemachines.com/post/intuitive-machines-and-nasa-finalize-contract-for-extreme-lunar-mobility-spacecraft), which aims to [hop five times](https://jatan.space/moon-monday-issue-134/) to capture high-resolution imagery and other measurements of the surface under its flight path.

![](https://jatan.space/content/images/2024/02/https-3a-2f-2fbucketeer-e05bbc84-baa3-437e-9518-adb32be77984-s3-amazonaws-com-2fpublic-2fimages-2fc7696af5-aa5e-4cb0-b0f1-82204430e2bd_3262x2160-jpeg.jpg)

Illustration of Intuitive Machines’ lander on the Moon with NASA’s PRIME-1 drill attached. [Image: Intuitive Machines](https://www.intuitivemachines.com/post/nasa-intuitive-machines-announce-landing-site-location-for-lunar-drill)

### First CLPS mission by Masten

Masten Space’s lander aimed to touchdown on the Moon’s south pole in November 2023\. It was to have at least [eight instruments](https://masten.aero/blog/masten-mission-1-instruments-lunar-south-pole) onboard, chiefly to detect water ice and other volatiles such as methane and carbon dioxide to help us understand the Moon’s resource potential. The lander was also supposed to deploy Astrobotic’s shoebox-sized autonomous rover called [MoonRanger](https://jatan.space/moon-monday-issue-93/). NASA even planned to put [a neutron spectrometer](https://www.nasa.gov/feature/ames/where-s-the-water-two-resource-hunting-tools-for-the-moon-s-surface) onboard the rover to detect signs of [water ice](https://jatan.space/ultimate-guide-to-water-on-the-moon/) below the surface.

But following a [Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing](https://spacenews.com/masten-space-systems-files-for-bankruptcy) by Masten on September 13, 2022, the mission seems to have been rendered impossible. Astrobotic [acquired Masten Space](https://www.astrobotic.com/astrobotic-acquires-masten-space-systems), including much of its space technology portfolio [for $4.5 million](https://spacenews.com/court-approves-sale-of-masten-assets-to-astrobotic). Debra Needham, Program Scientist at NASA’s Exploration Science Strategy and Integration Office, said at the [2023 annual LEAG meeting](https://www.hou.usra.edu/meetings/leag2023/technical%5Fprogram) in September that the agency plans to “strategically manifest payloads” from Masten’s mission onto other landers as feasible.

### VIPER rover delivery by Astrobotic

Astrobotic planned to launch NASA’s [VIPER rover](https://jatan.space/nasa-viper-mission/) to the Moon’s south pole in November 2024 on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket. VIPER was to explore areas in and around [permanently shadowed regions](https://jatan.space/permanently-shadowed-regions-on-the-moon/) for over 100 days, and use its drill and three instruments to unravel the nature of the Moon’s [water ice](https://jatan.space/ultimate-guide-to-water-on-the-moon/) deposits, assess their resource potential, and determine how accessible they are. This would’ve helped us plan future human missions to the Moon’s poles and eventually build [sustainable habitats](https://www.nasa.gov/feature/nasa-outlines-lunar-surface-sustainability-concept). On the same mission, ESA will fly a [landing-precision-aiding camera](https://www.esa.int/Science%5FExploration/Human%5Fand%5FRobotic%5FExploration/ESA%5Flunar%5Flanding%5Fcamera%5Fto%5Ffly%5Fto%5Fthe%5FMoon), the first ever commercial delivery to the Moon contracted by the agency.

Given the mission’s criticality, NASA [took a more conservative approach](https://jatan.space/moon-monday-issue-87/) with VIPER compared to other CLPS contracts. The agency [requested](https://www.nasa.gov/feature/nasa-replans-clps-delivery-of-viper-to-2024-to-reduce-risk) Astrobotic to delay VIPER’s delivery by a year, and contracted them $67.8 million to perform additional testing of the mission’s large, 5900-kilogram [Griffin lander](https://www.astrobotic.com/griffin) in order to reduce risk. At $320.4 million, VIPER was the most expensive CLPS delivery yet. Note that NASA separated its own costs to build and operate VIPER (currently at $433.5 million) from the payment to Astrobotic.

But in July 2024, NASA [questionably cancelled the mission](https://jatan.space/moon-monday-issue-186/) and has opted for [a VIPER-less Artemis](https://jatan.space/moon-monday-issue-204/). The agency then [tried finding](https://jatan.space/moon-monday-issue-212/) a private company that will fly and operate the rover at its own cost, an approach many argued [decidedly fails at VIPER’s original goal](https://jatan.space/moon-monday-issue-188/). After evaluating the [proposals submitted by private companies](https://spacepolicyonline.com/news/nasa-evaluating-11-viper-proposals-as-congress-asks-questions/), NASA has [come to the same conclusion](https://www.nasa.gov/blogs/missions/2025/05/07/nasa-to-explore-additional-methods-to-send-viper-to-moon/). The agency will [restructure the solicitation](https://spacenews.com/nasa-backtracks-on-viper-commercial-partnership/) to elicit stronger proposals that hopefully stay closer to VIPER’s [original science goals](https://jatan.space/nasa-viper-mission/). **Edit:** NASA has now [tentatively chosen](https://jatan.space/moon-monday-issue-243/) Blue Origin’s second Mark I lander to fly VIPER in 2027.

In the meanwhile, Astrobotic has [completed](https://www.astrobotic.com/integrated-griffin-1-simulation-sticks-the-landing/) [testing](https://www.astrobotic.com/astrobotic-tech-passes-critical-tests-for-safe-moon-landings/) their lunar navigation and guidance systems to be onboard Griffin. The large lander’s primary payload will be the [FLIP rover](https://www.astrolab.space/flip-rover/) by Astrolab (a Moon Monday sponsor), which got [manifested recently](https://jatan.space/moon-monday-issue-212/) after NASA decided not to fly VIPER aboard. Astrobotic also [announced](https://www.astrobotic.com/astrobotics-cuberover-is-flight-ready-for-lunar-mission/) that its [first CubeRover](https://jatan.space/moon-monday-issue-172/#astrobotic-to-fly-cuberover-on-griffin-after-all) has successfully passed the [standard suite of space environmental tests](https://jatan.space/how-we-test-moon-landers/) ahead of its flight on this Griffin lander.

![](https://jatan.space/content/images/2024/02/https-3a-2f-2fsubstack-post-media-s3-amazonaws-com-2fpublic-2fimages-2fbc256e02-f279-4ba4-b8ac-1b6e5a732a67_2200x1550-jpeg-1.jpg)

Illustration of the VIPER rover exploring the Moon’s south pole. [Image: NASA](https://www.nasa.gov/feature/ames/lets-get-building)

### Firefly’s first CLPS mission

![](https://jatan.space/content/images/2025/04/firefly-blue-ghost-nasa-clps-mission-1.jpg)

Blue Ghost Mission 1\. [Images: Firefly Aerospace](https://www.flickr.com/photos/fireflyspace/albums/72177720313239766/)

**March 2025 update:** [*Firefly successfully landed and performed scientific experiments*](https://jatan.space/moon-monday-issue-218/#firefly-deserves-an-unusual-kudos) 🚀

On January 15, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket [successfully launched](https://youtu.be/7jqWHtNv7YU?feature=shared&t=2996) and deployed Firefly’s [Blue Ghost lander](https://fireflyspace.com/missions/blue-ghost-mission-1/) in Earth orbit. It aims to descend in the [lava plains of Mare Crisium](https://jatan.space/moon-monday-issue-70/#firefly-selects-goldilocks-landing-site-for-its-first-moon-mission) at 18.56°N, 61.81°E in March 2025, carrying [several NASA instruments](https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-selects-firefly-aerospace-for-artemis-commercial-moon-delivery-in-2023) to study the lunar environment.

One of the lander’s legs feature [PlanetVac](https://www.planetary.org/sci-tech/planetvac), a low-cost soil sampling technology partially funded by The Planetary Society to enable future sample return missions from the Moon, Mars and other planetary bodies. This mission will also be NASA’s first attempt to get a [GPS lock from the Moon](https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2021/nasa-explores-upper-limits-of-global-navigation-systems-for-artemis). The mission also has two commercial payloads.

**Related:* On the same launch as Blue Ghost, the Falcon 9 upper stage also deployed ispace Japan’s* [*Hakuto-R lander*](https://jatan.space/moon-monday-issue-193/#second-ispace-moon-mission-on-the-horizon) *to space. The mission followed up on the company’s* [*first failed landing attempt*](https://jatan.space/moon-monday-issue-129/) *but also failed to touchdown due to* [*performance issues*](https://spacenews.com/laser-rangefinder-problems-blamed-for-second-ispace-lunar-lander-crash/?ref=jatan.space) *of the laser rangefinder. The outcome underscored the need for resilience in private lunar landing missions* [*through expansive and collaborative testing*](https://jatan.space/moon-monday-issue-228/)*. One must note that ispace has* [*continued its remarkable transparency*](https://jatan.space/moon-monday-issue-228/#tenaciously-transparent) *from the first failed landing mission, sharing* [*detailed findings*](https://ispace-inc.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/M2-Technical-Cause-Analysis-Materials.pdf?ref=jatan.space) *of what went wrong in mere weeks.*

![](https://jatan.space/content/images/2025/01/ispace-m2-lander-resilience-1.jpg)

ispace Japan’s second Moon lander, named RESILIENCE, at JAXA’s Tsukuba Space Center. Also seen integrated into the lander is ispace’s first rover TENACIOUS. [Image: ispace](https://ispace-inc.com/news-en/?p=6120)

### Intuitive Machines’ third CLPS mission

Intuitive Machines’ [third Moon landing](https://jatan.space/nasa-clps-mission-to-reiner-gamma/) will be in the [swirl of Reiner Gamma](https://jatan.space/swirls-on-the-moon/) in 2026\. Reiner Gamma has a weak local magnetic field, possibly a remnant from the time the Moon [had a global magnetic field](http://advances.sciencemag.org/content/3/8/e1700207). The mission’s primary payload suite [Lunar Vertex](https://www.jhuapl.edu/NewsStory/211018b-lunar-vertex) is a collection of spectrometers and magnetometers on the lander and [a rover](https://lunaroutpost.com/lunar-outpost-delivers-first-flight-model-rover-in-record-time) to study the swirl’s composition, and map the strength and direction of magnetic fields on the surface. This will help us better understand the effects of [solar wind](https://jatan.space/the-sun-and-its-wind/) and [bombarding micrometeorites](https://jatan.space/the-tiniest-of-impact-craters/) on planetary bodies across our Solar System, and also shape our understanding of the Moon’s magnetic evolution.

Relatedly, NASA has been [testing](https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/nasas-trio-of-mini-rovers-will-team-up-to-explore-the-moon) variants of the three shoebox-sized [CADRE rovers](https://www.nasa.gov/directorates/spacetech/game%5Fchanging%5Fdevelopment/projects/CADRE) to be deployed at Reiner Gamma by the aforementioned lander. The rovers will autonomously navigate the landed region to demonstrate collectively better mapping it than a single rover would. The rovers will have multistatic ground penetrating radars to create 3D images of the subsurface structure up to 10 meters deep.

### Draper’s farside CLPS mission

For [its first CLPS mission](https://jatan.space/moon-monday-issue-87/) in 2026, Draper will land a spacecraft made by ispace on the Moon’s farside, a feat only achieved by China’s [Chang’e 4](https://www.planetary.org/space-missions/change-4) mission so far. The landing region chosen by NASA for the mission is no less impressive—the 312 kilometers wide [Schrödinger crater](https://jatan.space/the-crowned-crater-of-schrodinger/), the most pristine impact feature of its kind. The lander will carry [95 kilograms of NASA’s scientific instruments](https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-selects-draper-to-fly-research-to-far-side-of-moon), which includes two highly sensitive seismometers, a drill, a probe, and a magnetic sounder, all to help us better understand the Moon’s internal structure and composition, and [how our cosmic neighbor evolved](https://jatan.space/the-two-faced-moon/). The lander will also carry [LuSEE-Lite](https://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/news/uc-berkeley-put-experiment-surface-moon-next-2-years), which shielded from Earth’s radio noises on the farside makes it apt to study [the solar wind](https://jatan.space/the-sun-and-its-wind/)’s interactions with the Moon’s surface.

**Also see:** [*How ispace, CLPS, funding, and science are interlocked*](https://jatan.space/moon-monday-issue-184/)

### Firefly’s second CLPS mission

![](https://jatan.space/content/images/2025/01/lunar-pathfinder-relay-service-1.jpg)

The Lunar Pathfinder will relay communications between Earth and robotic mission hardware at the Moon as a commercial service. [Image: SSTL](https://www.esa.int/Applications/Navigation/Galileo%5Fwill%5Fhelp%5FLunar%5FPathfinder%5Fnavigate%5Faround%5FMoon)

Firefly [will deliver](https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-picks-firefly-aerospace-for-robotic-delivery-to-far-side-of-moon) an orbiter and several surface payloads to the Moon in 2026\. The company will use a similar [lander design](https://fireflyspace.com/blue-ghost) as its first CLPS mission but [add a transfer stage](https://spacenews.com/firefly-wins-second-nasa-clps-mission) to deliver the 280-kilogram [Lunar Pathfinder](https://jatan.space/nasa-esa-collaborate-on-lunar-pathfinder/) orbiter for ESA in lunar orbit. Pathfinder is a stepping stone towards [Moonlight](https://jatan.space/moon-monday-issue-98/), ESA’s upcoming commercial navigation and communications constellation. The Firefly lander itself will attempt a touchdown on the Moon’s farside carrying [LuSEE-Night](https://www.nasa.gov/feature/nasa-department-of-energy-join-forces-on-innovative-lunar-experiment), a first of its kind instrument to [measure faint but unique radio signals](https://jatan.space/moon-monday-issue-118/) from our Universe’s ‘Dark Age’—a slice of time right before the first stars were born.

Firefly later won an extended [$18 million contract](https://fireflyspace.com/news/firefly-awarded-18-million-nasa-contract-to-provide-radio-frequency-calibration-services-from-lunar-orbit) from NASA to provide services for LuSEE-Night. The lander will host the “User Terminal” payload to enable LuSEE-Night to communicate to and fro Earth via the Elytra stage in lunar orbit. Elytra will also provide radio frequency calibrations for LuSEE-Night. In all, the two LuSEE payloads will [help us characterize](https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/atoms/files/bale4lusee.pdf) the Moon’s radio emissions for [future farside radio telescopes](http://www.psrd.hawaii.edu/May21/radio-astronomy-from-Moon.html).

The Firefly lander will [also carry](https://fireflyspace.com/news/firefly-announces-agreement-with-fleet-space-to-deliver-payload-to-the-moon) a commercial seismometer from Australia-based Fleet Space Technologies, which once deployed will operate by tapping into lander-provided power and communications services—much the same as how the [seismometer](https://www.isro.gov.in/Ch3%5FILSA%5FListens%5FLanding%5FSite.html) deployed by ISRO’s [Chandrayaan 3](https://jatan.space/chandrayaan-3/) lander operated. SPIDER will offer scientists insights into the physical structure and nature of the local crust and subsurface, including hints of resources such as [water ice](https://jatan.space/ultimate-guide-to-water-on-the-moon/). The lander will also deploy [UAE’s Rashid 2 rover](https://jatan.space/moon-monday-issue-226/#firefly-to-carry-second-uae-lunar-rover-and-more) on the Moon.

### Expanding scope

With the mission selection to Reiner Gamma and Schrödinger, NASA began an [enhanced science phase](https://science.nasa.gov/researchers/solicitations/roses-2021/amendment-22-payloads-and-research-investigations-surface-moon-prism-draft-text-released-community) of its CLPS program. The next missions in this phase will visit [the volcanic domes of Gruithuisen](https://www.nasa.gov/news-release/more-nasa-science-tech-will-fly-to-moon-aboard-future-firefly-flight/) with a [rover from Honeybee Robotics](https://www.honeybeerobotics.com/news-events/firefly-aerospace-selects-blue-origins-honeybee-robotics-to-provide-rover-for-lunar-mission-to-gruithuisen-domes/), two to the south pole with [Intuitive](https://jatan.space/moon-monday-issue-191/) and [Firefly](https://www.nasa.gov/news-release/nasa-selects-firefly-for-new-artemis-science-tech-delivery-to-moon/) respectively, and to [Ina](https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/new-nasa-artemis-instruments-to-study-volcanic-terrain-on-the-moon). NASA [says](https://www.nasa.gov/content/commercial-lunar-payload-services-overview) future CLPS missions could also deliver more advanced rovers, technology demonstrations, standalone scientific payloads, and even infrastructure required by [Artemis](https://www.nasa.gov/specials/artemis) human landing missions.

## A new commercial model for planetary missions

Landing on the Moon is hard. Only five countries have accomplished this feat so far—the Soviet Union, the US, China, India, and Japan. The fact that NASA is entrusting commercial companies with the agency’s crucial lunar scientific and technological objectives, many of which will directly affect their Artemis plans, shows their growing confidence in building a commercial ecosystem around [lunar exploration](https://jatan.space/why-explore-the-moon/). CLPS also [inverts the tradition](https://www.planetary.org/space-advocate/january-2022-space-advocate) of having only custom-built planetary missions to meet specific scientific goals.

However, the CLPS program has been challenging, particularly with an [immature supply chain and keeping costs in check](https://jatan.space/moon-monday-issue-146/). Ultimately, if enough of the CLPS missions stick the landing, it could open up frequent and periodic access to the Moon’s surface for diverse scientific investigations in ways never possible before for any planetary body.

## Resources

[Read more CLPS updates →](https://jatan.space/tag/clps/)

[How to follow CLPS updates →](https://jatan.space/how-to-follow-nasa-clps-updates/)

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*A much earlier version of this article was originally published on* [*The Planetary Society*](https://www.planetary.org/space-missions/clps) *in 2022\. Since then, the piece has been significantly rewritten, updated, and revised on here to provide the latest launch and mission information.*