NASA cancels VIPER mission amid rising costs and uncertainty

In September 2023, NASA made the significant decision to cancel the VIPER lunar mission after facing escalating costs and doubts regarding the readiness of the Griffin lunar lander. This move came after prolonged challenges faced by Astrobotic's Peregrine spacecraft, which launched in January 2023 but soon developed a propellant leak in its propulsion system, hindering the planned lunar landing. Although Astrobotic's engineering team attempted to rectify the issue, they were ultimately unsuccessful in controlling the leak, which created an unfavorable situation for the mission's success. The purpose of NASA's "commercial lunar" program was to promote the development of a lunar economy by enabling missions capable of transporting small- and medium-sized cargo to the Moon. The cancellation of VIPER was seen as a notable setback, as John Thornton, CEO of Astrobotic, indicated that it was a difficult year for their team. NASA had previously shown commitment to the contract and had intended for Astrobotic to send a mass simulator to the lunar surface. However, as costs continued to rise, the situation prompted the agency to reconsider and ultimately cancel the mission. Despite the setback with VIPER, Astrobotic sought alternatives to fulfill the lunar lander's capacity, which is significant, allowing transportation of over half a ton (650 kg) of payload to the Moon's surface—marking it as the largest lunar lander since the Apollo missions. The landscape of lunar missions had changed with the emergence of larger vehicles such as Blue Origin's Blue Moon Mk 1 and SpaceX's Starship; however, both programs were predicted to have delays that pushed their lunar launches beyond the timeline of Griffin, which was expected to launch within the next 12 months. Amid the changes, Astrolab—a company selected by NASA to work on lunar rover designs—announced a partnership with SpaceX to send the commercial FLEX rover to the Moon by December 2026. Astrolab saw an opportunity to leverage Griffin's payload capacity, transitioning their initial plans from simply flying a prototype to ensuring they could send a half-ton rover named FLIP. This rover would serve as a testbed for various technologies required for lunar operations. NASA has stipulated that rovers should be capable of operating for several years, and Astrolab's commitment to the FLIP rover aligns with this goal, aiming to conduct multiple experiments on the harsh lunar surface as it proves the rover's technology. Overall, the combination of unforeseen technical challenges faced by Peregrine and escalating costs led to the cancellation of the VIPER mission, while pushing companies like Astrobotic and Astrolab to explore new opportunities in lunar exploration.