NASA Delays VIPER Moon Rover Mission
NASA decided to delay its Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover (VIPER(Opens in a new window)) mission in order to allow for additional testing of the Griffin lunar lander.
The launch was planned for Novermber 2023, with VIPER being transported to the Moon on a SpaceX Falcon-Heavy rocket and delivered to the Moon's surface using Astrobotic's Griffin lander. However, NASA has now instructed both the VIPER and Astrobotic teams to aim for a November 2024 launch instead.
NASA explains in its announcement of the mission delay(Opens in a new window) that additional ground testing of the Griffin lunar lander is required so as to "reduce the overall risk to VIPER’s delivery to the Moon." It's understandable why NASA is being so cautious when you consider VIPER is being transported to the Nobile Crater at the Moon’s South Pole, which just so happens to be one of the coldest areas in our solar system.
A 12-month delay doesn't come without additional costs, and because the extra testing is mandated by NASA, the space agency has added another $68.7 million to Astrobotic's Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) contract to cover the work. Hopefully this delay doesn't have an impact on the planned 2025 Moon landing.
Once VIPER does land on the Moon, its key focus will be on the location and concentration of water ice that could eventually be harvested "to sustain human exploration on the Moon, Mars — and beyond." The rover will also represent the first resource mapping mission on another celestial body.
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