Artemis 1 will launch from Complex 39B at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center
Terran Orbital Corporation (NYSE: LLAP), a global leader in satellite solutions primarily serving the US and allied aerospace and defense industries, has delivered the LunIR to Complex 39B at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. LunIR is a 6U satellite that will fly to the Moon and collect surface thermography as a secondary payload on NASA’s Artemis 1 test mission for the Space Launch System (SLS). Offering greater payload mass, volume and energy, SLS, the world’s most powerful rocket to date, can carry more payloads into deep space than any other vehicle. The SLS also contains the Orion capsule, NASA’s ‘spacecraft’ that will take humans deep into space. After the flyby, LunIR will conduct technology demonstrations related to deep space operations.
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LunIR is a 6U satellite that will fly to the Moon and collect surface thermography as a secondary payload on Artemis 1 Terran Orbital Corporation
LunIR is Terran Orbital’s second lunar satellite, the first being CAPSTONE currently bound to the Moon. Terran Orbital will guide LunIR through a “moon camera” visual guidance system that uses a new Lockheed Martin algorithm to locate homing targets.
The Lunar Infrared Imaging Spacecraft, also known as LunIR, is a joint effort between Lockheed Martin and Terran Orbital. Lockheed Martin developed the LunIR&CloseCurlyQuote infrared sensor and cryocooler to operate both day and night, mapping the lunar surface, detecting materials and collecting thermal signatures. The company also provides overall system engineering and mission planning. Terran Orbital designed and built the spacecraft and is responsible for mission integration and provisioning.
The mission’s primary goal is a technology demonstration whose findings will potentially address NASA’s strategic knowledge gaps for surface characterization, remote sensing and site selection observations for the Moon, as well as long-duration missions to Mars. The LunIR sensor could be an important tool for astronauts returning to the Moon and going beyond it to Mars.
“Working alongside Lockheed Martin and NASA is always a privilege,” said Mark Bell, co-founder, chairman and CEO of Terran Orbital. “The technologies that Lockheed and NASA bring to the table are unmatched. LunIR will help us understand the truly endless possibilities in lunar and Martian travel. Terran Orbital is grateful for the opportunity to develop and operate the spacecraft for this groundbreaking mission.”
“We look forward to continuing to work with Terran Orbital on this important technology demonstration and look forward to seeing what images LunIR collects of the Moon once it’s on its way,” said John Ricks, Lockheed Martin’s LunIR program manager.
LunIR includes two deployable solar panels. The 11-kilogram satellite will communicate with Earth through ground stations operated by Kongsberg Satellite Services (KSAT) in Punta Arenas, Chile; Svalbard, Norway; and Troll Station, Antarctica.
About Terran Orbital
Terran Orbital is a leading satellite manufacturer serving primarily the United States and allied aerospace and defense industries. Terran Orbital provides complete satellite solutions by combining satellite design, manufacturing, launch planning, mission operations and on-orbit maintenance to meet the needs of the most demanding military, civil and commercial customers. Learn more at www.terranorbital.com.
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