Supervisor Elham AbolFateh
Editor in Chief Mohamed Wadie

Elon Musk's SpaceX to Build NASA Lunar Lander


Sat 17 Apr 2021 | 08:02 AM
Taarek Refaat

NASA has chosen Elon Musk's SpaceX to receive $2.9 billion to build a lunar lander as part of Artemis' mission to the moon by 2024.

Up to four astronauts were picked to be on NASA's Space Launch System aboard the Orion spacecraft. From there, two people will then transfer to SpaceX's lunar Lander. They will spend about a week exploring the lunar surface, board the lander and then return to Orion.

SpaceX, Jeff Bezos's Blue Origin, and Dynetics, a defense contractor were the three main contenders for the project, and NASA had rewarded the three competitors with a total of $967 million for developing the Lunar Lander.

The SpaceX bid was Starship, the next-generation spacecraft the company is building in Boca Chica, Texas. It’s expected to be able to carry a crew of astronauts and 100 tons of cargo. Starship is supposed to use its main engines to lower itself to a hard surface, such as the Moon or Mars.

https://twitter.com/SpaceX/status/1383160370248896512?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1383160370248896512%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theverge.com%2F2021%2F4%2F16%2F22387887%2Felon-musk-spacex-win-nasa-lunar-lander-contract-artemis

The next-generation spacecraft is expected to be able to carry a crew of astronauts and 100 tons of cargo.

SpaceX only landed the Starship once on March 3, although it blew up almost immediately after that. Another landing attempt erupted on March 30.

New technologies will help astronauts discover the moon, Mars and other planets in the future.

The mission will land the first woman and the first person of color on the moon. In November, 18 astronauts who were part of the Artemis team were introduced.

https://twitter.com/NASAArtemis/status/1383156226360492035?s=20

It is noteworthy the Musk's net-worth dropped to US$175 billion as of  April 11. Musk has fallen to second spot, according to Forbes' estimates. Fueled by the skyrocketing Tesla share price, Musk's fortune has increased by more than $150 billion since March 2020,