Published 16:31 IST, September 24th 2019

NASA seals megadeal with Lockheed for its manned moon mission

NASA sealed a deal of $2.7 bn with Lockheed Martin to build three Orion spacecraft that will allow the first woman and next man to reach Moon by 2024.

Reported by: Kunal Gaurav
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American ncy National Aeronautics and ministration (NASA) sealed a deal of $2.7 billion with Lockheed Martin to build three Orion craft that will allow first woman and next man to reach Moon by 2024. Each capsule, for Artemis mission III to V, can carry four astronauts. In a statement, NASA said that ncy plans to order three ditional Orion craft at a total of $1.9 billion in fiscal year 2022 for Artemis missions VI through VIII. NASA stated optimization of production and lower costs as reason behind ordering of craft in groups.

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'Highly capable, state-of--art craft'

“This contract secures Orion production through next dece, demonstrating NASA’s commitment to establishing a sustainable presence at Moon to bring back new kwledge and prepare for sending astronauts to Mars,” said NASA ministrator Jim Bridenstine. “Orion is a highly-capable, state-of--art craft, designed specifically for deep missions with astronauts, and an integral part of NASA’s infrastructure for Artemis missions and future exploration of solar system,” he ded.

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Focus on building a sustainable presence on lunar surface

craft production will focus on reusability and building a sustainable presence on lunar surface for its moon mission. Senator Ted Cruz of Texas, where Johnson Center is located, said he was pleased that Bridenstine heeded his calls and is taking significant steps to ensure Johnson continues to grow. "More needs to be done, and I look forward to production ramping up in weeks and months to come and to more opportunities with NASA,” said Senator Cruz.

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NASA's future plans

Artemis program of NASA is next step towards human exploration and a part of broer Moon to Mars exploration approach. Under program, NASA is working to land first woman and next man on Moon. NASA has also given people opportunity to send ir names on Mars aboard its Mars rover 2020 mission. y handed out artificial boarding passes to people who registered ir names for it.

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16:07 IST, September 24th 2019