Blue Ghost (named after the rare Phausis reticulata firefly) will operate on-board payloads through lunar transit, during lunar orbit, and on the lunar surface for a complete lunar day (about 14 Earth days) and well into the freezing dark of lunar night. Blue Ghost (named after the rare Phausis reticulata firefly) will operate on-board payloads through lunar transit, during lunar orbit, and on the lunar surface for a complete lunar day (about 14 Earth days) and well into the freezing dark of lunar night. The company has designed and developed the lander at its Cedar Park facility, which will also serve as the 2023 delivery’s mission operations centre. The lander will carry a suite of 10 science investigations and technology demonstrations to the Moon in 2023 as part of NASA's Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative. Firefly is developing, qualifying, and manufacturing Blue Ghost at its spacecraft integration facilities in Cedar Park, Lander Program Manager Shea Ferring said. NASA awarded a contract to Firefly Aerospace to deliver a suite of 10 science investigations and technology demonstrations aboard a Blue Ghost lander to the Moon in 2023. Illustration of of Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost lander on the lunar surface. Markusic, however, said that Firefly will largely build Blue Ghost from scratch. “This is 100 percent American technology,” he said. The lander will carry a suite of 10 science investigations and technology demonstrations to the Moon in 2023 as part of NASA's Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative.Credits: Firefly Aerospace NASA has awarded Firefly Aerospace of Cedar Park, Texas, approximately $93.3 million to… The lunar investigations will come shortly before NASA's planned missions to the moon and beyond. NASA announced February 5 that it had awarded Firefly Aerospace with a $93.3 million contract to deliver ten science and technology demonstration payloads to the surface of the Moon by 2023. This rare type of firefly only glows during mating season, which begins in the late spring or early summer. Mare Crisium, where Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost will land, is a more than 300-mile-wide basin where instruments will gather data to provide insight into the Moon’s regolith – loose, fragmented rock and soil – properties, geophysical characteristics, and the interaction of solar wind and Earth’s magnetic field. This facility also will house the integration of NASA and any non-NASA payloads, and also will serve as the company’s mission operations center for the 2023 delivery. In addition to the NASA-sponsored payloads, the lander will carry more than 50 kg of commercial payloads. Reusable High Delta-V Transfer Stage for Small Spacecraft Subtopic Title: Small Spacecraft Transfer Stage Development . Firefly's lunar delivery system will be based around the company's Blue Ghost lander, which will land in a lunar basin known as Mare Crisium. Blue Ghost is a lunar lander designed internally at Firefly to meet NASA's updated requirements for a CLPS lunar lander. Firefly's Blue Ghost will land in an area of the Crisium basin known as Mare Crisium, a 300-mile-wide valley where NASA hopes to gain more understanding about the loose rock and soil, as well as the interaction of solar wind and Earth's magnetic field. A janitor’s cart is far less interesting than the truth – that this is an artist’s rendering of the Blue Ghost, a robotic lander being built by Texas-based Firefly Aerospace to deliver 10 scientific experiments and technology demonstrations to the lunar surface in 2023. Credit: Firefly Aerospace . The color isn't the only unusual quality about these otherworldly insects. Firefly Aerospace Blue Ghost Lunar Lander (Photo: Business Wire) “Firefly and its teammates are honored to be selected by NASA to deliver these important payloads to the lunar surface, paving the way for human and robotic exploration missions to follow. Mare Crisium, where Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost will land, is a more than 300-mile-wide basin where instruments will gather data to provide insight into the Moon’s regolith – loose, fragmented rock and soil – properties, geophysical characteristics, and the interaction of solar wind and Earth’s magnetic field. In addition to NASA’s payloads, the lander will also have room for over 50 kg of commercial payloads. Illustration of of Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost lander on the lunar surface. Separately, NASA awarded Firefly Aerospace a $93.3 million contract to deliver 10 science investigations to the Moon in 2023, using its Blue Ghost lunar lander. The mission, destined for Mare Crisium, a low-lying basin on the Moon’s near side, will investigate a variety of lunar surface conditions and resources. Firefly is developing, qualifying, and manufacturing Blue Ghost at its spacecraft integration facilities in Cedar Park, TX, about 30 minutes north of Austin. Illustration of Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost lander on the lunar surface. Firefly Research, Inc. Cedar Park, TX. Illustration of of Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost lander on the lunar surface. In addition to the NASA-sponsored payloads, the lander will carry more than 50 kg of commercial payloads. Firefly Aerospace will provide the lunar delivery service using its Blue Ghost lander, which the company designed and developed at its Cedar Park facility in Texas. LuGRE will receive signals from both GPS and Galileo. The Blue Ghost will operate on-board payloads through lunar transit, during lunar orbit, and on the lunar surface for a complete lunar day, which equals approximately 14 Earth days. For Firefly Aerospace, it is the first delivery contract and it will provide the lunar delivery service, using its Blue Ghost lander. Firefly had earlier acquired technology tied to Israel’s Beresheet lunar lander that crashed into the Moon in 2019. (courtesy: Firefly Aerospace) “We’re excited another CLPS provider has won its first task order award. This is Firefly’s first award under NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative, part of the Artemis program. This is the first delivery awarded to Firefly Aerospace, which will provide the lunar delivery service using its Blue Ghost lander, which the company designed and developed at its Cedar Park facility. The lander will carry a suite of 10 science investigations and technology demonstrations to the Moon in 2023 as part of NASA's Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative. The company has created preliminary designs for the spacecraft and will have much work to do to meet its second half of 2023 launch date target. A summary of the SUV proposal follows. Principal Investigator: Dr. William … Firefly Aerospace received $93.3 million from NASA to design & create a landing device called the ‘Blue Ghost Lander’ which will be launched during a 2023 moon mission. Illustration of of Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost lander on the lunar surface. Firefly’s Blue Ghost lander in its maiden voyage to the moon will hold 10 scientific payloads. Firefly is developing and manufacturing the Blue Ghost at its Texas facilities. Außerdem arbeitet das Unternehmen an dem Mondlander Blue Ghost. SBIR PHASE 1 AWARD Amount: up to $125,000 Duration: 6 months. The lander will carry a suite of 10 science investigations and technology demonstrations to the Moon in 2023 as part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative. Firefly entwickelt zwei Trägerraketen: Die Alpha (auch Firefly α) für bis zu 1 t schwere Nutzlasten und die Beta (Firefly β) für Nutzlasten bis 8 t.Ein erster Flug der Alpha ist für 2021 geplant. The Firefly Aerospace Blue Ghost lunar lander will carry 10 NASA payloads to the surface of the Moon in 2023 | Image credit: Firefly Aerospace . Firefly Aerospace Inc., a Cedar Park-headquartered rocket manufacturer, has secured a $93.3 million contract from NASA to build a lunar lander, Blue Ghost… Despite being developed by Firefly, IAI will support the Blue Ghost lunar lander development effort as per their previous agreement on Genesis. Firefly had earlier acquired technology tied to Israel’s Beresheet lunar lander that crashed into the Moon in 2019. Illustration of of Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost lander on the lunar surface. Markusic, however, said that Firefly will largely build Blue Ghost from scratch. Firefly Aerospace ist ein US-amerikanisch-ukrainisches Raumfahrtunternehmen. That's when they show off their unique blue-white hues to attract a mate. Related Posts. Firefly will use its Blue Ghost lander for the mission, which is set to launch in 2023. The lander will carry a suite of 10 science investigations and technology demonstrations to the Moon in 2023 as part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative. Credit: Firefly Aerospace. Mare Crisium, where Firefly Aerospace's Blue Ghost will land, is a more than 300-mile-wide basin where instruments will gather data to provide insight into the Moon's regolith – loose, fragmented rock and soil – properties, geophysical characteristics, and the interaction of solar wind and Earth's magnetic field. 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