Voyager Technologies' Griffin-1 lunar lander completes testing at NASA JPL
Griffin-1 has completed environmental testing at JPL ahead of a Falcon Heavy launch to the Moon later this year.
Voyager Technologies' Griffin-1 lunar lander has passed a series of environmental tests at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California. Engineers and technicians used a crane to position the spacecraft in JPL's 25-Foot Space Simulator on 31 August.
The tests simulated the extreme temperatures and vacuum of space, as well as the intense shaking and noise of launch. Results show the spacecraft is ready to survive the rigours of space exploration, according to NASA.
Griffin-1 flies under NASA's CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative within the Moon Base Program. It is expected to launch later this year aboard a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket.
The lander will deliver more than 1,100 pounds (455 kilograms) of cargo to Nobile Crater near the lunar South Pole.
Sourcenasa.gov