Images courtesy of Blue Origin
One of the first “Human Landing Systems” that will return astronauts to the Moon will be built by a team led by a local company.
The crew of Artemis V, the third crewed lunar landing mission planned, will get there on a vehicle built by “the National Team,” led by Blue Origin of Kent. It’s a three-stage vehicle, which will transport the team to the Moon and includes the descent or landing stage to be built by Blue Origin itself.
John Couluris, the National Team HLS Program Manager, says, “The descent element, built by Blue Origin, is really a game-changing moon landing vehicle. That’s leveraging three years of experience that Blue has been working to allow a sustained human presence for decades to come by using lunar resources.” Those resources include water ice that could be used for drinking, growing food and to make fuel.
Artemis V with the Blue Origin lander is scheduled for launch in September of 2029.
You can see the tech demo of the National Team’s lunar transport and landing vehicle in the Blue Origin video below:
