Lunar Terrain Vehicle

UPDATED: APRIL 3, 2024
 

Lunar Dawn Team Awarded NASA Lunar Terrain Vehicle Contract

 

It's time to get things rolling!

NASA has awarded a Lunar Terrain Vehicle (LTV) development contract to the Lunar Dawn team, led by Lunar Outpost in partnership with Lockheed Martin.

The Lunar Dawn LTV will give Artemis astronauts a safe and extraordinary mobile experience on the Moon, allowing accessibility across the lunar surface like never before. The vehicle will be able to operate crewed or uncrewed, with completely autonomous navigation and operation, and includes a reconfigurable cargo bed that will be able to load and carry numerous types of payloads thanks to its robust robotic arm.

Lockheed Martin brings decades of experience delivering highly complex deep space vehicles including the complexities that come with human space flight on programs like Orion, HLS Cislunar Transporter and planetary missions such as Lucy and OSIRIS-REx

Opening Access to the Moon for All

A Game-Changing Vehicle

The Lunar Terrain Vehicle (LTV) provides unmatched capabilities, applying best of breed aerospace and automotive innovations in power systems, reliability and mission operations.

The LTV enables unprecedented exploration of the Moon with autonomous, telerobotic and manual operation. Transformational range, capability and support for astronauts & robotic missions unlock the full potential of partner initiatives, like Artemis - redefining the way in which we conduct deep space missions for science, exploration and emerging industry.

 

Lunar Dawn team logo

 

 

Capabilities and Services

lunar night

Enabling Payloads to Survive the Lunar Night
eva

Support Two Crew in EVA Suits with Cargo, Simultaneously or Separately
mapping

High-Resolution Imaging and Mapping
shadow

Permanently Shadowed Region Operations
wifi

WiFi-Enabled Payload Communications
robotic

Robotic Arm Payload & Surface Interface

Vehicle Statistics 

1,500+ kg
Total Payload Capacity
8 kph
Teleoperated Top Speed
50 Mbps
Downlink to Earth
1,000+ km
Range per Lunar Day
500 kg
Commercial Payloads to Lunar Surface

 

 

 

Lunar Mobility as a Service

We are combining forces with Lunar Outpost, General Motors, Goodyear and MDA Space to radically redefine the way in which we perform deep space science and interact with the lunar surface. In late 2028, we will launch the Lunar Terrain Vehicle (LTV), a highly capable, human-rated Moon rover that expands on NASA’s Lunar Terrain Vehicle requirements to enable a flexible, commercially focused service. 

The LTV can travel over 1000 km in a lunar day, keep payloads alive during the lunar night, and explore permanently shadowed regions for multiple Earth days at a time. The vehicle's unique capabilities enable missions which stretch across the South Pole region and into the lower latitudes, through extreme terrain and into highest-value scientific or commercially aligned hotspots. It will act as a hardware demonstration platform, a low-gravity manufacturing plant, a prospecting & mining rig, a survivability testbed, a modular sensor hub, and an infrastructure enabler, supporting payloads for months or years as it travels.
By leveraging both its own built-in sensors (including radar, LiDAR, cinematic cameras, and a neutron spectrometer) and partner payloads, the LTV will also map multiple square kilometers of the lunar surface each lunar day for scientific analysis, public access, private customer use, and astronaut training programs. It will enable landing site investigation, film lander descents, and relocate payloads or critical assets. Leveraging a commercial approach and democratizing lunar access, where NASA is one customer of many, the Lunar Dawn team looks forward to working with additional partners, customers, and payload providers to generate impactful lunar science and diverse mission opportunities that drastically exceed contemporary limitations at a fraction of the cost.
lunar outpost
lm
gm
goodyear
mda

 

Luna Ride

Lunar Science Rideshare

The MILO Space Science Institute (MILO) is seeking collaborations with international partners based on their unique capabilities and mutual scientific goals to participate in a lunar science rideshare mission, Luna Ride. MILO, a subsidiary of Arizona State University, will work with those interested in deploying payloads to the surface of the Moon on the Lunar Dawn Lunar Terrain Vehicle.

The Luna Ride mission will include transportation, communication, support for survivability, and deployment of payloads onto the lunar surface.

Lunar Dawn lunar terrain vehicle in a clean room