NASA has awarded a contract to develop a minimal habitation module for its lunar Gateway project to Northrop Grumman. The agency revealed in a justification document that Northrop was the only one of six firms that could meet the 12 to 18 months deadline. Northrop's proposed module is based on its Cygnus cargo spacecraft, which was deemed small enough and sufficiently well-developed for NASA's project. NASA said holding a full and open competition would have caused "unacceptable" delays of mid-2023.
NASA has awarded a contract to develop a minimal habitation module for its lunar Gateway project to Northrop Grumman. The agency revealed in a justification document that Northrop was the only one of six firms that could meet the mid-2023 deadline. Northrop's proposed module is based on its Cygnus cargo spacecraft, which was deemed small enough and sufficiently well-developed for NASA's project. NASA said holding a full and open competition would have caused "unacceptable" delays of 12 to 18 months.