The announcement is the latest in a stream of funding contracts NASA has awarded private companies in its effort to establish a permanent presence on the moon.

NASA announced Tuesday the selection of three companies to land four new missions on the Moon in late 2028 as part of the agency’s Moon Base Program.

Conceptualized just a few months ago, NASA’s moon base plans are rolling out in earnest as the space agency maps out plans to deliver landers, rovers, buggies and other assets to…