MoonNext

MoonNext
MoonNext
Operator ESA
Major contractors TBD
Mission type Lunar Lander with possible Rover
Launch date 2015-2018
Carrier rocket Ariane 5 with Soyuz 2.1b module

The MoonNext Mission, also known as the ESA Lunar Lander, is a proposal by the European Space Agency to send a high capacity cargo lander to the lunar surface using a full Ariane 5 rocket. The mission would be launched from Kourou in 2018 taking a few days to transfer from Earth to a Low Circular Lunar orbit. A landing would then take place at the Lunar south pole and the deployed equipment and payload would be operational for one year once on the moons surface. Different approaches to meeting this goal are currently being considered by ESA.

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Objectives

The missions overall objectives would be to perform a Autonomous Soft Precision Landing including the demonstration of hazard avoidance technology and systems. The Lander (spacecraft) would become autonomous 1 hour and 30 minutes before touch down with the Coasting, Breaking and Approach phases as well as the Terminal Descent all being carried out without direct human guidance. The payload of surface experiments and a possible Rover (if the mission mass budget allows) would then be deployed for 1 year of operations during which time the mission would maintain direct contact with Earth. The actual landing mass of the craft is proposed to be between 650 and 800 kg with a payload capability of a few tens of kilo's.

The mission proposal also includes the payload objectives of carrying lunar environmental monitoring and geophysics experiments, these experiments would be aimed at identifying and characterizing potential hazards such as dust contamination, radiation and impact threats . The Lander (spacecraft) would also demonstrate technologies for future human exploration by supporting the first man made ecosystem during its operational lifespan and it is hoped the mission will be able to characterize a location for a potential human outpost as well as assessing the internal structure and composition providing information on the geological history of the moon.

International collaborations

Kourou, the spaceport from which the MoonNext mission would be launched, is situated in French Guiana, an overseas department of France, and its launch operations are jointly run by the ESA, CNES (the French national space program) and Arianespace, who all maintain teams and facilities there in addition to Guiana's own space-oriented industries. The ESA would also work closely with Roscosmos, the Russian Federal Space Agency to produce the mainly Soyuz-based components as well as drawing upon personnel and skills from European Countries and Associate ESA members to produce the internal components and possible Rover to construct the proposed deployment vehicle and lander.

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