WASHINGTON — NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman announced Monday that the space agency will launch three missions to begin construction of its much-anticipated “Moon Base” later this year, with more than a dozen other trips in the works.
The first three missions will be led by Blue Origin, Astrobotic, and Intuitive Machines, respectively, and deliver important payloads intended to lay the groundwork for construction of the lunar facility.
“These represent the first of more than a dozen missions we expect to announce through the balance of this year as we return, build the base, and never give up the moon again,” Isaacman told reporters Tuesday. “And as mentioned, just like in decades past, we are taking the world along with us.”
NASA administrator touted that there are three upcoming moon-based missions for 2026, teasing that there are more than a dozen more in the work. NASAIn the first mission, Blue Origin’s Blue Moon Mark 1 (MK1) lunar lander will deliver payloads to the Lunar South Pole in the “first privately funded lunar lander mission in history.” The second mission will feature “the largest commercial payload delivered to the lunar surface ever” from Astrobotic’s Griffin Mission One. The third mission will study the moon’s mysterious Reiner Gamma swirl and deliver payloads from the European Space Agency and the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute.
Also Tuesday, NASA rolled out a new Moon Base website to keep the public apprised of its progress.
The Moon Base will be pursued over three major phases: learning, building, and testing; early habitation; and sustained human presence. NASA hopes to reach the “early habitation” stage by the first part of 2029.
When completed, the lunar outpost will take up “hundreds of square miles,” according to Moon Base Program Executive Carlos Garcia Galan, adding that the facility may require a power grid, cell towers, and other infrastructure to support human life.
“The endeavor of building a moon base is going to be extremely hard, and it dawns on us every day how little we know of the lunar surface,” said Galan.
Isaacman stressed that rather than relying on a few “exquisite” pieces of lunar hardware, the space agency’s goal is to encourage private sector investment.
To that end, Blue Origin, founded by Jeff Bezos, was awarded a $188 million contract to deliver Lunar Terrain Vehicles (LTVs) to the moon’s surface.
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman speaks during a news conference at NASA headquarters in Washington, DC, on May 26, 2026. AFP via Getty ImagesTo build the LTVs themselves, NASA awarded AstroLab and Lunar Outpost $219 million and $220 million, respectively.
Meanwhile, Firefly Aerospace has been picked to transport drones to the moon — with a target date of 2028 — so they can collect enhanced imagery and scout out areas for landing and “prospective Moon Base” sites.
“We will not sit on our hands and wait for industry to deliver,” Issacman told reporters. “In the time since Artemis II, we have been extremely active.”
To build the LTVs themselves, NASA awarded AstroLab and Lunar Outpost $219 million and $220 million, respectively. AFP via Getty Images“We’ve been reviewing feedback from the ignition events, speaking to industry, addressing supply chain challenges, having the tough conversations with those failing to meet expectations, and offering NASA’s assistance to solve problems.”
The Artemis II lunar flyby took place last month. NASA is aiming to launch Artemis III to test the Orion spacecraft next year.
Artemis IV, the mission on which astronauts will ideally set foot on the moon for the first time since 1972, is scheduled for 2028.
