Leonard David's INSIDE OUTER SPACE

Lights-on or off for the ice-hound?
Image credit: NASA

NASA has been investigating how to get the VIPER (Volatiles Investigating Polar Explorer Rover) to the Moon after the project was canceled in July 2024.

Following an evaluation of partnership proposals to land the water-seeking robot on the lunar surface, NASA announced Wednesday that it is now opting to explore “alternative approaches” to plop that machinery on the Moon.

Being abandoned is the Lunar Volatiles Science Partnership Announcement for Partnership Proposals solicitation, which sought opportunities to send VIPER to the Moon at no cost to the government.

A close-up view of the areas that were to be explored by VIPER, showing a nominal traverse route and highlighting permanently shadowed regions that may contain water ice and other volatiles.
Credit: NASA’s Scientific Visualization Studio/Ernie Wright

Additional methods

Now NASA wants to explore additional methods to send VIPER to Moon.

In a NASA statement, “the agency will announce a new strategy for VIPER in the future.”

Back last year, NASA said it planned to disassemble and reuse VIPER’s instruments and components for future Moon missions.

Chamber testing

Prior to disassembly, NASA’s opened the door for expressions of interest from U.S. industry and international partners for use of the existing VIPER rover system at no cost to the government.

The VIPER rover heading into the Thermal Vacuum (TVAC) Chamber for testing.
Image credit: Daniel Andrews/LinkedIn

Also last year, Congressional lawmakers are took a budgetary hard-look at the situation, prodded in part, by a save VIPER letter-writing campaign involving thousands of shoot-for-the-Moon supporters.

VIPER completed last October thermal vacuum chamber testing.

At that point in time, NASA had put in $450 million into VIPER.