The year 2025 will be a standout year for commercial missions to the Moon.
It is planned to carry out several missions in 2023 under the contracts of NASA's Commercial Lunar Payload Services program.
At the end of February, a lunar module will launch from NASA's Kennedy Space Center with instruments to explore what lies beneath the lunar surface. This will be the third flight to the Moon in 2025, a year that is shaping up to be crucial for establishing a commercial presence on the Moon, in contrast to 2024, which was focused on planning. However, there is a possibility that priorities may shift if the focus is redirected toward Mars.
Last year began with the launch of Astrobotics' Peregrine lunar module, marking the start of multiple company-led missions under NASA's Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program. Although Peregrine did not reach its destination due to a propellant leak, Intuitive Machines successfully landed its Odysseus spacecraft on the Moon, a significant milestone for commercial spaceflight.
This year, NASA has several missions scheduled under the aforementioned CLPS program. The first, called Blue Ghost Mission 1 from Firefly Aerospace, launched on January 15 on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. This same launch included a lunar module from the Japanese company ispace, which is attempting to conduct a second commercial test with its Hakuto-R mission. Blue Ghost is expected to land in Mare Crisium on March 2, carrying 10 scientific payloads and a system to protect against dust accumulation.
Meanwhile, ispace's Resilience lunar module will take a low-energy route to Mare Frigoris, with an estimated arrival time in late May or June. This module features a micro rover named Tenacious, designed to explore the lunar surface and collect data, as well as several instruments and even a small model house by Swedish artist Mikael Genberg.
Intuitive Machines, which conducted the first commercial lunar landing mission last year, plans to launch its second mission in the coming months. The IM-2 Nova-C module, nicknamed Athena, will target the lunar south pole with a drill and a mass spectrometer to investigate the potential for extracting water samples.
The development of Blue Origin's mission, the Blue Moon Mark 1 lunar module, is also progressing, although its mission depends on the success of the New Glenn rocket's launch, which completed its first flight in January. This module is expected to carry a camera system to the lunar south pole, crucial for planning future crewed missions.
Astrobotic is also planning a new landing attempt with its Griffin module, which will carry a small rover and a laser retroreflector system to help locate the module. Additionally, Intuitive Machines is anticipated to conduct a third mission before the end of the year, which will include several instruments aimed at studying the magnetic properties of a special lunar area, as well as the development of an autonomous rover.
Despite the excitement and advancements in these missions, human presence on the Moon is still scheduled for a later date. NASA has adjusted the timelines for the Artemis missions, postponing the first crewed flight to April 2026, while the mission in which two astronauts will land on the Moon is not expected until mid-2027.
