Live-streamed and recorded NASA news conference May 26 on Moon Base plans featured Jared Isaacman, Lorie Glaze and Carlos García-Galán. Isaacman restated the intention to “begin stacking Artemis 3 this summer with a target launch in mid 2027.” He spoke of leveraging commercial industry capabilities to build landers, rovers, technology and research projects suitable for “this epic science of [lunar] survival” in the hostile Moon environment, saying, “We go for the technology we will pioneer to get there,” which “will make life better here on Earth.” Mission 1 will be Blue Origin Mark 1 Endurance lander delivering multiple payloads to Shackleton Ridge NET Fall 2026. Mission 2 will be Astrobotic Griffin lander taking >500 kg of cargo including Astrolab’s Flip rover. Mission 3 will deliver the 1st payload selected in the NASA Prism Initiative competition among universities, researchers and industry, to study lunar swirls. Missions 2 and 3 are “targeted to launch before the end of 2026,” by which time at least 10 more missions are expected to be announced. Payloads from ESA and Korea will be included. The NASA Moon Base website launched “in the last hour.” Glaze said, “We’re moving toward the cadence necessary for a sustained deep space program.” García-Galán announced awards: Blue Origin Mark1, similar to Endurance, to deliver LTVs and, in Fall 2027, VIPER, at US$234M each; for crewed and autonomous rovers, Astrolab FLEX and Lunar Outpost Pegasus are chosen at US$220M each. Moonfall drones being developed by JPL will be taken by Firefly Elytra. More awards will be announced later this month. In the Q&A, Blue Origin was named as chosen for Artemis III. (Image Credits: NASA)