Today, NASA announced it had selected 13 US companies with 19 partnerships for its Moon to Mars mission. NASA Moon to Mars mission is expected to kick off by 2024 with the Artemis program.
We’ve identified technology areas NASA needs for future missions, and these public-private partnerships will accelerate their development so we can implement them faster. – Jim Reuter, associate administrator of NASA’s space technology mission directorate.
The selection that was made in October 2018 is mainly within the key areas for providing future development and help in further exploration of technology, which is important to America’s approach. The key areas are advanced communications, navigation, and avionics; entry, descent, and landing; in-space manufacturing and assembly; advanced materials; power; and propulsion.
NASA’s Moon to Mars mission will take “Elon Musk’s SpaceX which NASA says will work with the Kennedy Space Center in Florida to advance technology to land large rockets on the Moon vertically.” Space X will also explore advancing tech that NASA says is an important step in the development of the company’s Starship space vehicle.
NASA will also collaborate with Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin to have an advanced navigation and guideline system for a precise Moon landing. It will also try to explore the fuel cell power system with the company that could provide uninterrupted power during the lunar nights.
