Overview
NASA is embarking on one of the most ambitious space endeavors in history: building the Moon Base near the lunar South Pole. This initiative will secure American leadership in space, unlock groundbreaking scientific discoveries, and forge the technologies and operational experience needed to send humans to Mars. Built with the strength of industry innovators and the collaboration of international partners, NASA’s Moon Base initiative will establish humanity’s first sustained presence on the Moon while driving innovation, inspiring future generations, and helping fuel an emerging lunar economy.
Location
NASA plans to establish the Moon Base near the lunar South Pole, one of the most strategically and scientifically valuable regions on the Moon.
The lunar South Pole region offers unique environmental conditions that make it well suited for long-term human exploration. Unlike many regions of the Moon that experience long periods of darkness followed by long periods of daylight, parts of the South Pole receive extended sunlight and shorter periods of shadow. These lighting conditions can support more consistent solar power generation and improved thermal stability for exploration systems and surface operations. At the same time, permanently shadowed regions remain in continuous darkness, creating extremely cold environments where water ice and other volatiles may be preserved.
These ice deposits may contain a record of how water and other materials moved through the solar system over time. Studying samples from these deposits could help scientists better understand the history of the Moon, Earth, and the processes that shaped conditions for life. The identification and analysis of these volatiles may also help support a more sustained human presence on the Moon by informing how local resources could one day be utilized for exploration activities.
The South Pole region is also scientifically significant because it lies near some of the oldest terrain on the Moon, including the South Pole–Aitken Basin, the largest and oldest known impact basin in the solar system. Samples collected from this region could provide insight into the early history of the Moon, the Earth-Moon system, and the broader evolution of the solar system.
Development
NASA will establish the Moon Base in the lunar South Pole region through a phased, iterative approach that builds capability over time. By starting with near-term technology demonstrations, robotic missions, and early experiments, NASA and its partners can test systems, learn quickly, and steadily mature the capabilities required for continuous human presence on the Moon.
Phase One (Now–2029): Experiment and Learn
NASA will begin with a rapid series of robotic missions to scout the lunar South Pole region, test technologies, and prepare for surface operations ahead of future astronaut missions.
- A major increase in lunar activity, with up to 25 missions, including 21 landings.
- Crewed and autonomous rovers for mobility demonstrations and surface preparation, along with four drones known as MoonFall and communications relay and observation satellites.
- Early demonstrations of power, navigation, communications, and nuclear radioisotope heater unit technologies designed to endure the long lunar night.
- Scientific payload opportunities integrated across landers and rovers.
- The first tangible footprint of Moon Base effort, with four tons of payload delivered to test what works on the lunar surface.
Phase Two (2029–2032): Early Habitation
By 2029, NASA will transition to assembling semi-permanent infrastructure and initiating early habitation and logistics operations.
- Deployment of expanded solar power systems and initial nuclear surface power capabilities, potentially including fission reactors and radioisotope power systems.
- Upgraded rovers, potential advanced MoonFall drones, and early habitation elements.
- Enhanced surface-to-orbit communications networks to provide reliable connectivity across the lunar South Pole region.
- Delivery of up to 60 tons of cargo through as many as 24 landings using low-, medium-, and heavy-class cargo landers.
Phase Three (2032 and Beyond): Sustained Human Presence
This phase will scale operations to achieve a true enduring presence, with routine crew rotations and continuous surface activity. This is when living and working on the Moon becomes a reality.
- Semi-permanent habitation modules with spacious interior for crew living and operations.
- Operational fission surface power systems capable of delivering steady, reliable energy through the long lunar nights, leveraging in situ resource manufacturing.
- Advanced logistics networks supported by crewed and autonomous rovers to keep the base supplied and functioning year-round.
- Delivery of up to 38 tons of cargo annually to sustain habitats, power systems, logistics operations, and major science outposts, enabled by low-cost reusable heavy-lift capabilities.
Collaboration
NASA’s Moon Base strategy is built on commercial and international participation at an unprecedented scale, combining the strengths of government, private innovation, and global collaboration.
From early demonstrations to long-term surface operations, Moon Base build-up will offer multiple entry points for industry and international partners to participate, innovate, and contribute.
Leadership
Carlos García-Galán, Moon Base Program Executive
Carlos García-Galán is the Program Executive for Moon Base, bringing more than 27 years of experience in human spaceflight to this role. In this position, he supports the overall management and development of NASA’s Moon Base, part of the agency’s broader effort to establish a lasting human presence on the Moon and prepare for future deep space exploration. Read more.
History
2026
- The Moon Base was announced during NASA’s “Ignition” event on March 24, 2026, where the agency unveiled a series of transformative initiatives designed to achieve President Donald J. Trump’s National Space Policy and advance American leadership in space. During the event, NASA introduced a phased approach to establishing a lunar base and enabling a sustained human presence on the Moon.
- Following the “Ignition” event, NASA released a series of Requests for Information (RFIs) and Requests for Proposals (RFPs) to begin advancing development of Moon Base and its supporting systems and services.
- In May 2026, NASA announced the first three Moon Base missions — Moon Base I, II, and III — and new partnerships supporting sustained lunar exploration. The agency selected Astrolab and Lunar Outpost to develop the first phase of lunar terrain vehicles, awarded Blue Origin task orders supporting delivery of those vehicles to the lunar surface, and selected Firefly Aerospace to build the spacecraft that will transport NASA’s MoonFall drones to the Moon.
Every mission, crewed and uncrewed, will be a learning opportunity as we return to the lunar surface, build the infrastructure to stay, and master the skills required to live and operate in one of the most demanding and dangerous environments imaginable. We will go for the science, for all we stand to gain from an economic and technological perspective, for the innovations that will make life better here on Earth, and to prepare for where we will inevitably go next.
Temperatures at the lunar South Pole can range from more than 130°F (54°C) in sunlit areas to as low as -334°F (-203°C) inside permanently shadowed craters.
Shackleton Crater is more than twice as deep as the Grand Canyon. Its permanently shadowed interior is believed to contain ice, making it a leading target for future lunar exploration.
As part of Moon Base, NASA is advancing radioisotope heating demonstrations to help protect surface assets during cold lunar nights and operations in permanently shadowed regions.
Built on the legacy of NASA’s Ingenuity Mars Helicopter, MoonFall drones are designed to reach locations on the Moon that are difficult or impossible for traditional rovers to access.
NASA’s VIPER (Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover) will conduct the first resource-mapping mission of the Moon, using advanced instruments to identify the location and concentration of water at the lunar South Pole region.
NASA is partnering with American industry through the CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative to deliver a steady cadence of robotic missions to the lunar South Pole region in support of Moon Base development.
NASA is advancing fission power technologies to provide reliable, long-term energy for future operations on the Moon.
During Phase Two of Moon Base development, a pressurized rover supplied by JAXA is expected to dramatically expand how far astronauts can explore across the lunar South Pole.
Lunar regolith may one day help support life on the Moon. Researchers are studying how Moon dust could be used to build structures, grow crops, and even produce oxygen and rocket propellant for future exploration.
