The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) said it is reviewing Korea's communications, robotics, and mobility technologies as strong areas for cooperation in building a lunar base. NASA plans to finalize and announce the direction of cooperation with Korea within the next three months.
Carlos Garcia-Galan, NASA's head of the lunar base program, stated accordingly at a briefing on the 29th at The Korean Federation of Science and Technology Societies (KOFST) in Seoul, positively assessing Korea's space technology capabilities. The event was arranged in connection with the Artemis workshop on space exploration cooperation hosted by the Korea AeroSpace Administration and NASA.
NASA is pushing, through the Artemis program, beyond simple lunar exploration to build a lunar base equipped with communications, transportation, habitation, and research functions. The plan is to start with an exploration base at the lunar south pole and, in the long term, expand the infrastructure into a "small city" that combines research, production, and habitation facilities.
Garcia-Galan said, "Fifty years ago, during the Apollo program, the United States went to the moon on its own; now we aim to go by joining forces with international partners, including Korea," adding, "Korea is a partner with interest in the Artemis program, technological capabilities, and a well-prepared industrial base."
Nujoud Merancy, deputy chief of NASA's Strategy and Architecture Office, said, "For years we have been reviewing Korea's technological capabilities for international cooperation," adding, "Korea has long-standing experience in communications satellite systems and is competitive in robotics and mobility."
NASA expects a high degree of utilization of robotic systems such as unmanned rovers and exploration equipment in the initial phase of lunar base construction. It added that because the ultimate goal is long-term astronaut stays, development from the initial systems must factor in the safety and precision required for future crewed missions.
Garcia-Galan emphasized, "When discussing cooperation with Korea, robots and mobility may be the initial focus, but we must keep in mind missions that ultimately send people to the moon."
NASA said that, beyond core facilities such as large habitation modules, there could be international cooperation opportunities for rovers, pressurized rovers, landers, and small scientific payloads. It also said that small-scale projects to send and test 10–20 kg-class payloads developed by universities and research institutions on the lunar surface could be targets for cooperation.
It also left open the possibility of cooperation in supplying power to the lunar base. On the moon, night lasts about two weeks and temperature swings are extreme, making it difficult to secure stable power over long periods with solar generation alone. In response, NASA is reviewing various power supply methods, including nuclear power.
Merancy said, "Power is core infrastructure for the lunar base program," adding, "NASA is testing technologies at various scales." She went on, "The United States does not intend to develop all power technologies on its own," adding, "There is room for cooperation with international partners."
Korea's specific equipment or missions in the lunar base program have not yet been decided. Garcia-Galan added, "We are analyzing the key elements that will make up the lunar base, including transportation and return means, long-term habitation infrastructure, and lunar surface vehicles, and we will specify areas of cooperation through discussions with the Korea AeroSpace Administration," adding, "We will decide and announce detailed plans within three months."