NASA Selects Blue Origin to Deliver VIPER Rover to Moon’s South Pole — Ice-Hunting Mission Targeted for Late 2027

Washington, D.C. — September 19, 2025.
NASA has selected Blue Origin to proceed with delivering the VIPER (Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover) to the Moon’s south pole under a Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) task order valued at roughly $190 million for the initial design and demonstration work. NASA

What this award does

The task order funds Blue Origin to adapt its Blue Moon Mark 1 (MK1) cargo lander to carry, land, and safely off-load VIPER onto the lunar surface. The base award covers payload accommodations and an off-load demonstration; an additional contract option would be exercised later to perform the actual delivery if NASA approves Blue Origin’s demonstrations and flight performance. NASA+1

VIPER’s mission and why it matters

VIPER is a mobile, golf-cart sized rover designed to prospect for volatiles — especially water ice — in permanently shadowed and nearby sunlit regions at the lunar south pole. Its science package and 1-meter drill will map the distribution and concentration of water ice and other volatiles; the results will inform whether lunar water can be extracted and processed for life support and rocket propellant — a key capability for sustainable Artemis operations. NASA Science+1

A mission resurrected

VIPER’s route to the surface has been turbulent. NASA announced cancellation of the mission in mid-2024 after schedule slips and rising costs, leaving the assembled rover without its originally planned ride on Astrobotic’s Griffin lander. Since then, NASA explored alternative partnerships for delivering VIPER; the Blue Origin award restores a clear pathway for the rover’s science objectives, though the delivery option must still be exercised following design and demonstration milestones. NASA+1

Timeline and technical notes

Blue Origin plans to use a second Blue Moon MK1 lander — already in production — to carry VIPER and target a lunar surface arrival in late 2027, contingent on successful demonstrations and program reviews. As with all complex space programs, testing outcomes, technical challenges, and funding decisions could shift that schedule. NASA+1

Strategic significance

The award highlights NASA’s increasing reliance on U.S. commercial partners to accelerate lunar science and logistics. Acting NASA leadership framed the approach as a way to leverage industry capabilities to support a long-term American presence on the Moon under Artemis, while giving firms like Blue Origin a high-visibility opportunity to demonstrate soft-landing and payload delivery capabilities. NASA+1

What to watch next

• Blue Origin’s first Blue Moon MK1 flight results and NASA’s post-flight review. GeekWire
• Completion of Blue Origin’s CS-7 base design and off-load demonstration work. NASA
• NASA’s decision on exercising the delivery option to place VIPER on the lunar surface. NASA

Conclusion

The CLPS task order gives VIPER a renewed path to the lunar south pole and re-establishes a schedule target of late 2027 for surface delivery. While program risks and schedule drivers remain, the partnership underscores an evolving model for public–private collaboration that could enable sustained resource prospecting and future human operations on the Moon. NASA+1

External links (drop-in sources to include on the article page)

• NASA news release — NASA Selects Blue Origin to Deliver VIPER Rover to Moon’s South Pole. NASA
• NASA mission page — VIPER (Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover) (detailed mission and instrument overview). NASA Science
• Blue Origin — Blue Moon (MK1) lander overview. Blue Origin
• NASA news release — NASA Ends VIPER Project, Continues Moon Exploration (background on the 2024 cancellation). NASA
• Nature — reporting on NASA’s 2024 decision and context. Nature
• Space.com — coverage: VIPER lives! Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin will land ice-hunting rover on the Moon in 2027. Space
• GeekWire — coverage summarizing the award and Blue Origin activity.