SpaceX’s Moon Mission in Jeopardy as NASA Opens Artemis Contract to Rivals
NASA Reopens Moon Lander Contract Amid SpaceX Delays NASA’s surprise move to reopen the Artemis III lunar lander contract marks a dramatic shift in the U.S. return-to-the-Moon effort. Acting NASA Administrator Sean Duffy – who also serves as U.S. Transportation Secretary – revealed on Monday that NASA will no longer rely exclusively on SpaceX for the planned Moon landing mission. “I’m in the process of opening that contract up,” Duffy said, explaining that SpaceX’s development schedule has slipped too much reuters.com. SpaceX’s Starship rocket was originally slated to carry astronauts from lunar orbit to the surface in late 2025 or 2026,