NASA Selects Astrolab to Provide Lunar Rover for Artemis Astronauts’ Return to the Moon
Venturi Astrolab (Astrolab) announced today that NASA has selected the company as one of two providers of a crewed lunar rover for the Artemis program, advancing the agency’s plans to establish sustained surface mobility at the lunar south pole.
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260525294436/en/ This rendering shows Astrolab’s CLV-1 rover on the lunar surface. NASA selected Astrolab as one of two providers of a crewed lunar rover for the Artemis program. Credit: Astrolab
The award follows NASA’s announcement of its Ignition initiative, which revised the agency’s approach to lunar surface mobility and called for industry to deliver smaller rovers on an accelerated timeline. In response, Astrolab adapted its FLEX rover architecture to develop a new vehicle known as the Crewed Lunar Vehicle, or CLV-1. Like FLEX, CLV-1 is designed to support astronaut operations and science activities on the Moon.
Consistent with NASA’s requirements, CLV-1 is designed primarily to transport astronauts and their supplies, rather than carry external payloads like other Astrolab rovers. The rover also can conduct certain surface operations remotely. When stowed on a Commercial Lunar Payload Services lander for delivery to the Moon, CLV-1 measures approximately 2 meters long, 2.3 meters wide, and 2.2 meters tall. Once deployed on the lunar surface, CLV-1 will measure approximately 4 meters long by 2.3 meters wide, with a height of about 2.6 meters to the top of its antenna. It has a maximum mass of 950 kilograms and can reach speeds of 10 kilometers per hour on level ground. CLV-1 is the first in Astrolab’s planned CLV line, with future vehicles expected to be designated CLV-2, CLV-3 and so on.
