This photo from NASA shows the Viper (Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration) vehicle at the Johnson Space Center in Houston on July 7, 2024. NASA has said it is canceling the water-seeking lunar rover, citing cost overruns and launch delays. | Photo credit: AP
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) said on Wednesday, July 17, 2024 that they are water-seeking lunar roverciting cost overruns and launch delays.
The Viper rover was scheduled to launch in late 2023 aboard an Astrobotic Technology lander, but additional testing and higher costs continued to delay the mission and threaten other projects, the space agency said.
The rover’s goal was to explore the moon’s south pole. According to NASA, approximately $450 million has been spent on its development so far.
The announcement comes days before the 55th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission, which landed Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin on the moon on July 20, 1969. NASA said it plans to study the presence of lunar ice through other projects.
Astrobotic still plans to fly its Griffin lunar lander – minus a rover – late next year. The company’s first moonshot ended in failure in January with a fiery plunge over the South Pacific.
