NASA awards Firefly Aerospace contract to deliver tech to the moon's Gruithuisen Domes

CEDAR PARK, Texas - The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has awarded Firefly Aerospace in Cedar Park, Texas a $179.6 million contract to deliver and operate six scientific instruments to the Gruithuisen Domes, a geologically unique area on the Moon's near side, in 2028.

The mission, part of NASA's Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative, will employ Firefly’s Blue Ghost lunar lander, Elytra Dark orbital transfer vehicle, and a rover provided by an industry partner. The goal is to study the composition of the Gruithuisen Domes, which have never been explored.

"Firefly is proud to land our fourth NASA CLPS award for another complex mission, which is what our team does best," said Jason Kim, CEO of Firefly Aerospace. "This incredible team gained a hard-earned reputation for smooth payload integrations, well-rehearsed operations, and robust testing and transparency throughout Blue Ghost Mission 1 preparations."

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For the mission, Firefly’s Elytra Dark vehicle will deliver the Blue Ghost lander into lunar orbit and remain in orbit to provide communications support. The lander will then touch down in the Gruithuisen Domes, deploy a rover, and facilitate scientific operations for more than 14 days.

Onboard the Blue Ghost lander will be a range of NASA instruments, including the ROLSES telescope, the SAMPLR robotic arm, the NMLS neutron detector, the PILS photovoltaic investigation system, and the Heimdall camera system. The mission will also carry the Lunar-VISE payload, designed to analyze the composition of the Gruithuisen Gamma Dome.

The Gruithuisen Domes are believed to contain silica-rich volcanic minerals, which may indicate the presence of water and hydrogen. The mission aims to explore the formation and physical characteristics of the domes while investigating potential resources such as water molecules.

"Firefly is dedicated to flying annual missions to the Moon for both government and commercial customers as we continue to pave the way for a lasting lunar presence," said Brett Alexander, Chief Revenue Officer at Firefly Aerospace. "We’re seeing growing interest from organizations looking to unlock the Moon’s resources and build a robust lunar ecosystem."