Nikon partners with NASA for handheld cameras as part of Artemis Moon mission

Lunar Partnership: Japanese photo-imaging multinational Nikon has joined hands with NASA as part of a Space Act Agreement, outlining their work together to operate in the harsh lunar environment.

The collaboration will begin with Artemis III, wherein Nikon’s mirrorless camera will be used for capturing image and video for the mission, Nikon said in a statement.

Scheduled for September 2026 in NASA’s Orion spacecraft, the expedition marks the crew’s first human landing on the Moon since 1972.

The 2026 mission is also special for marking the first time a woman would walk on the surface of Earth’s satellite.

“The camera will be the first mirrorless handheld camera used on the Moon, designed for capturing imagery in low-light environments. Prior to Artemis missions, the camera will be used at the International Space Station to demonstrate its capabilities,” NASA said in a blogpost.

Nikon said its engineers are working closely with NASA for developing solutions that can work in lunar vacuum, in a surface marred with temperature swings and cosmic radiation which can damage electrical components.

Nikon will also support vacuum thermal testing and simulations to maintain operational status even as it is 3,83,000 kilometres away from Earth.

Additionally, it will have a custom grip for astronauts including common controls like shutter release, playback and still/video capture switching.

The camera will also feature a “thermal blanket” created by NASA, akin to the ones used by astronauts of the International Space Station.

Other features in the camera include noise reduction to lower shutter speeds, changes in the file naming sequence and default settings and controls optimised for outward missions.

The in-camera communication control has also been changed to simplify the astronaut’s workflow and reduce power consumption while sending space to Earth.

Nikon said its cameras have been used by NASA and space agencies for the past 50 years, starting from the Apollo 15 mission.

For scientific research aboard the International Space Station, the space agency has collaborated with the cameramaker since 1999 through Nikon cameras (Nikon F5) and NIKKOR lenses.