In July, NASA announced that the VIPER rover would not be sent to search for deposits of water ice at the bottom of craters at the south pole of the Moon. This mission was considered strategic for establishing a base for a permanent human presence on the Moon. NASA’s 2025 budget has been cut by the US Congress, forcing the cancellation of a number of missions, including VIPER. The scientific community greeted this news with hostility and sent a petition to Congress demanding that money be allocated to send the lunar rover.
Image source: NASA
The letter to the authorities was signed by over 4,500 scientists – planetary scientists and lunar specialists. The agency has already spent $450 million on the creation of the lunar rover. The ultra-modern device is almost ready and only needs to complete a series of tests, which requires only $100 million, not counting the money for the launch. This is all the more important because China is breathing in the back of the United States, which has begun actively sending automatic stations to the Moon. There is a high probability that China will be able to choose the most suitable location for a future lunar base and, one way or another, stake it out.
At the same time, there may be a different problem with the NASA VIPER lunar rover. The Astrobotic company was supposed to deliver it to the Moon on its transport and landing module. Not only did the development and production of the landing and transport platform last for years, but its first launch ended in an accident and loss of payload. It is possible that NASA does not want to bring these problems into the public space, since this also reflects the failure of the agency’s policies. The problem with the Boeing Starliner alone is worth it.
If Congress does not provide appropriations to advance NASA’s VIPER mission to the rover, the agency has two options for using the rover. First, it could be dismantled and the scientific instruments sold for use on other missions. Secondly, one of the private companies can buy the lunar rover and independently deliver it to the Moon. According to NASA representatives, a dozen companies are already interested in purchasing a lunar rover, including Intuitive Machines, which earlier this year somehow delivered an automatic station to the Moon. To deliver the VIPER rover there, the company promises to create more powerful Nova-D transport and landing platforms to complete the mission in 2026 or 2027. Congress has the floor.