Composition, radiation, dust, heat, and the lunar environment.
Science cargo and science sensor jobs are this shelf, with the science instrument jobs beside them. ADRON-LR, APXS, BioSentinel, LISTER, and NIRVSS show the range.
Mission brief
ADRON-LR is on Luna-25. APXS is on Pragyan on Chandrayaan-3. BioSentinel is on Artemis I. LISTER is on Blue Ghost Mission 1. NIRVSS is on IM-5 Nova-D, on Peregrine Mission One, and on VIPER.
Schematic
Cargo in the science category and jobs in the science sensor and science instrument categories are the shelf. The public names run from ADRON-LR and the Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer through the VIPER spectrometers.
Chang'e-5 lander Panoramic Camera (PCAM) for landing-site context imaging supporting sampling operations and site geology documentation. · Chang'e-5 · 2020-11-23
Hong Kong Polytechnic University Surface Sampling and Packing System (Samplers A/B, near-field cameras, sealing/packaging) for multi-point surface regolith scooping on Chang'e-5 lander, developed with CAST. · Chang'e-5 · 2020-11-23
JPL's Farside Seismic Suite is two seismometers in a self-powered cube, built to record moonquakes and meteor impacts from Schrödinger Basin on the lunar far side. · CP-12 Draper / ispace APEX · Cancelled July 2026
NASA JSC dust-accumulation sensor on Griffin-1 (Moon Base II), how lunar dust piles on spacecraft and surface systems. · Griffin-1 (Moon Base II) · NET late 2026
NASA's Compact Electron Proton Spectrometer flies on CAPSTONE 02 to measure radiation around the Moon and to demonstrate space-weather radiation forecasting. · CAPSTONE 02 · NET 2027
IKI RAS PmL-Ch7 suite on the Chang'e-7 lander: piezoelectric dust-impact sensors plus a Langmuir probe for local plasma density and temperature in the near-surface exosphere. · Chang'e-7 · NET 2027
ILOA + HKU Laboratory for Space Research wide-field optical telescope on the Chang'e-7 lander for Milky Way / galactic-plane imaging from the lunar south pole. · Chang'e-7 · NET 2027
Egypt (EgSA) and Bahrain (NSSA) co-develop the LunaHcam hyperspectral camera on the Chang'e-7 orbiter to image and analyse lunar surface materials, including polar regions. · Chang'e-7 · NET 2027
Spaceomix, the University of Malta, Weill Cornell Medicine, and Space Applications Services are developing Lunar BioVault as a long-term solid-state scientific digital archive. · Blue Moon MK1 Endurance (Moon Base I) · NET Q1 2027
L-CIRiS, the Lunar Compact Infrared Imaging System from the University of Colorado, is a multispectral imaging radiometer on IM-4 at Mons Mouton. · IM-4 · NET ~2027
NASA JSC LDES on IM-3 Trinity, dust accumulation on lander/surface systems at Reiner Gamma (second public LDES flight after Griffin). · IM-3 Trinity · NET Q1 2027
LUSEM, the Lunar Space Environment Monitor from the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute, flies on IM-3 in the CP-11 package. · IM-3 Trinity · NET Q1 2027
LuSEE-Night is a low-frequency radio telescope on Blue Ghost Mission 2, led by Brookhaven National Laboratory and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory under the Department of Energy. · Blue Ghost Mission 2 · NET 2027
Lunar Outpost's MAPP-variant rover flies in NASA's Lunar Vertex (LVx) PRISM suite on IM-3, hosting an APL magnetometer and a Canadensys rover multispectral microscope at Reiner Gamma. · IM-3 Trinity · NET Q1 2027
Space Applications Services LUVMI-M commercial lunar rover on Blue Origin Blue Moon MK1 to the lunar south pole (Belga/VRT: NET early 2029). · Blue Moon MK1 Endurance (Moon Base I) · NET Q1 2027
SwRI MAPS combined ion and electron spectrometer on the Lunar Vertex lander measures solar-wind plasma that reaches the surface inside the Reiner Gamma mini-magnetosphere. · IM-3 Trinity · NET Q1 2027
MoonLIGHT, the Moon Laser Instrumentation for General relativity High accuracy Test, is ESA's next-generation laser retroreflector, delivered on IM-3 with its MoonLIGHT Pointing Actuator. · IM-3 Trinity · NET Q1 2027
Surface and Exosphere Alterations by Landers (SEAL) molecular/gas detector for landing plume contamination and regolith alteration on IM-4 / CP-22. · IM-4 · NET ~2027
Characterize volatiles in the near-surface environment after touchdown (and drill cuttings when paired with ISRU tools). · VIPER on Blue Moon (CS-7) · NET late 2027 (contingent)
Observe near-IR light from lunar soil/cuttings to identify composition and volatile-bearing materials (VIPER-heritage instrument family). · VIPER on Blue Moon (CS-7) · NET late 2027 (contingent)
Planetary Science Institute Heimdall four-camera system (descent, workspace, regolith, panoramic) on Blue Ghost M3 / CP-21. · Blue Ghost Mission 3 · NET ~2028
Measure charged-particle radiation (linear energy transfer) at the surface to characterize the lunar radiation environment for crew and electronics. · IM-6 (Moon Base CS-8) · NET ~2028 (CS-8 Moon Base)
Measure charged-particle radiation (linear energy transfer) at the surface to characterize the lunar radiation environment for crew and electronics. · Blue Ghost Mission 5 (Moon Base CS-8) · NET ~2028 (CS-8 Moon Base)
Measure charged-particle radiation (linear energy transfer) at the surface to characterize the lunar radiation environment for crew and electronics. · Peregrine Mission 2 (Moon Base CS-8) · NET ~2028 (CS-8 Moon Base)
Measure charged-particle radiation (linear energy transfer) at the surface to characterize the lunar radiation environment for crew and electronics. · Peregrine Mission 3 (Moon Base CS-8) · NET ~2028-2029 (CS-8 Moon Base)
Lunar Vulkan Imaging and Spectroscopy Explorer (Lunar-VISE) PRISM-class suite on Blue Ghost M3 / CP-21 Gruithuisen Domes, rover+lander cameras, radiometer, gamma-ray/neutron spectrometer path. · Blue Ghost Mission 3 · NET ~2028
Neutron Measurements at the Lunar Surface (NMLS) thermal/epithermal neutron monitor on Blue Ghost M3 / CP-21 for surface context and remote-sensing calibration. · Blue Ghost Mission 3 · NET ~2028
Radio wave Observations at the Lunar Surface of the photoElectron Sheath (ROLSES) low-frequency radio spectrometer on Blue Ghost M3 / CP-21 (heritage instrument class from IM-1). · Blue Ghost Mission 3 · NET ~2028
LVM is a magnetometer from the Taiwan Space Agency (TASA), carried on Mission 3 ULTRA to measure the local magnetic field at the landing site. · ispace Mission 3 ULTRA · NET 2028
TSUKIMI is a science satellite from the Institute of Science Tokyo, funded through the initial phase of Japan's Space Strategy Fund, flying on Mission 3 ULTRA. · ispace Mission 3 ULTRA · NET 2028
Characterize volatiles in the near-surface environment after touchdown (and drill cuttings when paired with ISRU tools). · IM-5 Nova-D · NET ~2030 class
Observe near-IR light from lunar soil/cuttings to identify composition and volatile-bearing materials (VIPER-heritage instrument family). · IM-5 Nova-D · NET ~2030 class
Hong Kong Polytechnic University Surface Sampling and Packing System (Samplers A/B, near-field cameras, sealing/packaging) for multi-point surface regolith scooping on Chang'e-5 lander, developed with CAST.
JPL's Farside Seismic Suite is two seismometers in a self-powered cube, built to record moonquakes and meteor impacts from Schrödinger Basin on the lunar far side.
Lunar Compact Infrared Imaging System (L-CIRiS) multispectral imaging radiometer (CU Boulder LASP / Paul Hayne) on IM-4 / CP-22 for temperature and mineral composition panoramas.
Space Applications Services LUVMI-M is a commercially funded Belgian lunar rover booked on Blue Origin Blue Moon MK1 for early 2029 delivery to the lunar south pole.
IKI RAS PmL-Ch7 suite on the Chang'e-7 lander: piezoelectric dust-impact sensors plus a Langmuir probe for local plasma density and temperature in the near-surface exosphere.
Neutron Measurements at the Lunar Surface (NMLS) thermal/epithermal neutron monitor on Blue Ghost M3 / CP-21 for surface context and remote-sensing calibration.
Radio wave Observations at the Lunar Surface of the photoElectron Sheath (ROLSES) low-frequency radio spectrometer on Blue Ghost M3 / CP-21 (heritage instrument class from IM-1).
The Institute of Experimental and Applied Physics at Czech Technical University in Prague provides the neutron spectrometer suite of Neutron HardPix and Radiation HardPix on MAGPIE, ESA's first lunar rover.
RAL Space leads joint assembly and testing of the MAGPIE Volatile Analyzer with support from The Open University, which provides the Ion Trap Mass Spectrometer.
Technische Universität München provides the instrumented drill Volatiles Sampler as part of the Lunar Volatiles Scout on MAGPIE, ESA's first lunar rover.
City Labs' Autonomous Tritium Micropowered Sensors work puts NanoTritium betavoltaic batteries on small sensors meant to operate where the lunar south pole stays in shadow, including temperatures the company cites down to about -248 C.
GIMLI maps the subsurface at Marius Hills Pit to test whether the pit opens into a lava tube, with Honeybee Robotics providing active-source seismic, gravimeter, and cameras and the Norwegian Space Agency providing ground penetrating radar for Moon Base shelter and site intel.
NASA Goddard and Starpath Robotics have a Space Act agreement to build an engineering-model lidar from NASA's Wearable Active Sensing Processor technology, WASP, GSC-19414-1, under evaluation license DN-2592.
Flights
Beresheet2019-02-22 · SpaceIL / IAI Beresheet, private/national hybrid soft-landing attempt.Chang'e-52020-11-23 · CNSA national lunar sample-return (near side).Artemis I2022-11-16 · First integrated Artemis flight test: uncrewed SLS Block 1 + Orion.Chandrayaan-32023-07-14 · ISRO national soft-landing mission near lunar south polar highlands.Luna-252023-08-10 · Roscosmos national polar lander (Luna-25).SLIM2023-09-07 · JAXA SLIM precision soft-landing demo.Peregrine Mission One2024-01-08 · First CLPS launch: propellant leak after leaving Earth.IM-1 Odysseus2024-02-15 · IM-1 Odysseus (TO2-IM): first commercial soft landing (Feb 2024).Chang'e-62024-05-03 · CNSA national far-side lunar sample-return via Queqiao-2 relay.Blue Ghost Mission 12025-01-15 · Firefly Blue Ghost Mission 1 (TO19D ~$93.3M): Falcon 9 launch 2025-01-15 · soft landing (upright) Mare Crisium 2025-03-02 · all 10 NASA science/tech payloads operated through a full lunar day (+ hours into night).Hakuto-R Mission 2 Resilience2025-01-15 · Commercial payloads ~$16M.IM-2 Athena2025-02-27 · IM-2 Athena (PRIME-1 path): south polar attempt (Mar 2025).CP-12 Draper / ispace APEXCancelled July 2026 · Draper APEX 1.0 far-side CLPS award (CP-12).Griffin-1 (Moon Base II)NET late 2026 · Astrobotic / Voyager Lunar Systems Griffin Mission One, NASA Moon Base II.IM-3 TrinityNET Q1 2027 · Intuitive Machines IM-3 (CLPS CP-11): Nova-C Trinity, NASA Moon Base III.Blue Ghost Mission 2NET 2027 · Firefly Blue Ghost Mission 2 (CS-3 ~$112M, charter-bg2): planned far-side dual-stack (Blue Ghost stacked on Elytra Dark + ESA Lunar Pathfinder).CAPSTONE 02NET 2027 · NASA hired Advanced Space on 24 July 2026 to fly two identical 400 kg (882 lb) spacecraft to lunar orbit in 2027.Blue Moon MK1 Endurance (Moon Base I)NET Q1 2027 · Blue Origin Blue Moon Mark 1 Endurance.Chang'e-7NET 2027 · CNSA south-pole complex (orbiter, lander, rover, hopper) focused on water-ice and polar environment.IM-4NET ~2027 · Six NASA science payloads to Mons Mouton / south polar highlands.VIPER on Blue Moon (CS-7)NET late 2027 (contingent) · VIPER polar rover on second Blue Moon MK1 (CS-7).CX-2 Lunar Terrain Vehicle DeliveryNET 2028 · NASA CX-2 CLPS task order: Blue Origin Blue Moon MK1 delivers Astrolab CLV-1 and Lunar Outpost Pegasus to the lunar south pole.IM-6 (Moon Base CS-8)NET ~2028 (CS-8 Moon Base) · 2028 Moon Base batch.MoonFallNET 2028 · NASA JPL MoonFall sends four propulsive hop drones to the south pole in 2028.Peregrine Mission 3 (Moon Base CS-8)NET ~2028-2029 (CS-8 Moon Base) · Astrobotic Peregrine Mission 3 under NASA Moon Base / CS-8 batch.Peregrine Mission 2 (Moon Base CS-8)NET ~2028 (CS-8 Moon Base) · Astrobotic Peregrine Mission 2 under NASA Moon Base / CS-8 batch (public award packaging).Blue Ghost Mission 3NET ~2028 · Six NASA science payloads to Gruithuisen Domes.Blue Ghost Mission 5 (Moon Base CS-8)NET ~2028 (CS-8 Moon Base) · 2028 Moon Base CS-8 Firefly delivery: Blue Ghost to the near side (site TBA) with NASA SCALPSS, LRA, and LETS.ispace Mission 3 ULTRANET 2028 · ispace Japan ULTRA lunar lander, inaugural ULTRA flight.Blue Ghost Mission 4NET ~2029 · South-pole CLPS with multiple rovers (MoonRanger, CSA path) and instruments.ispace Mission 4 polar landerNET 2029 · ispace Japan polar landing, currently scheduled 2029, on the ULTRA lander line (same ULTRA design used on Mission 3).IM-5 Nova-DNET ~2030 class · First cargo-class Nova-D CLPS.