NASA on Tuesday announced plans for three uncrewed missions to the moon later this year that will serve as early steps toward the goal of building a permanent base on the lunar surface.During these missions — all robotic flights — NASA aims to scout locations at the moon’s south pole, gather scientific data, test technologies and prepare for the return of its astronauts to the lunar surface.“We are not jumping right into the glass dome moon base,” NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said Tuesday in a news briefing. “We intend to take an iterative approach, sending a demand signal to industry for a lot of landers and rovers and tech demonstrations, and all the scientific payloads these missions can accommodate.”NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman speaks May 19 in Washington. (Kevin Dietsch / Getty Images)(Kevin Dietsch)The newly announced missions, known as Moon Base 1, Moon Base 2 and Moon Base 3, are all slated to launch by the end of this year. The first is scheduled for no earlier than this fall, Isaacman said.AdvertisementAdvertisementJeff Bezos’ Blue Origin is set to play a major role in that first mission. NASA awarded the company a contract to carry two science and technology payloads to the moon using its lunar lander.“Moon Base 1 will be the first privately funded lunar lander mission in history,” Isaacman said.For the Moon Base 2 mission, Isaacman said a lander built by the Pennsylvania-based company Astrobotic will transport more than 1,000 pounds of cargo and a moon rover to the lunar surface.The Moon Base 3 mission is meant to be primarily scientific — the plan calls for the study of “lunar swirls,” which are unusual formations on the surface of the moon that mysteriously appear brighter than their surroundings. The mission will also deliver payloads from the European Space Agency and South Korea’s space agency, “demonstrating that the future of lunar exploration is an international effort,” Isaacman said.AdvertisementAdvertisementAll three newly announced flights are part of the first phase of NASA’s long-term plan to build a base on the moon. That initial phase is expected to last through 2029 and includes an aggressive lineup of uncrewed missions.“Phase one, for example, will have 25 launches, 21 landings, and we’re planning to deliver about 4 metric tons of cargo to the surface of the moon,” Carlos Garcia-Galan, NASA’s moon base program manager, said at Tuesday’s briefing.During the second phase, from 2029 to 2032, NASA plans to assemble semipermanent facilities to enable early habitation on the moon.By the third phase, starting in 2032, the agency said it aims to achieve a sustained presence on the lunar surface. Garcia-Galan said that the moon base could cover “hundreds of square miles.” By that time, NASA officials said they envision regular rotations of crews coming and …
