Firefly completes preliminary design review for NASA's MoonFall spacecraft
Firefly's Elytra spacecraft passed its preliminary design review for NASA's MoonFall drone mission to the lunar south pole.
Firefly Aerospace has completed the preliminary design review for its Elytra spacecraft, which will deliver drones built by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory to the Moon's south pole for the MoonFall mission. The company announced the milestone on 21 October from Cedar Park, Texas.
The review included members from NASA and JPL. It covered Elytra's structural, thermal, propulsion, avionics, trajectory design, guidance and navigation, and communications and control systems, along with qualification and environmental test plans. The review confirmed the design meets mission requirements.
Firefly will now work toward the critical design review ahead of hardware production and assembly. The company said the review came less than four months after contract award.
MoonFall is targeted to be ready for launch by late 2028. JPL is building the drones and managing the mission, and NASA will source the launch vehicle. Elytra will transit from Earth orbit to lunar orbit and deploy the drones above the south pole.
Sourcefireflyspace.com