PayloadMoonManifested

PROSPECT (Package for Resource Observation, in-Situ Prospecting for Exploration, Characterisation & Testing)

ESA drill (ProSEED) and miniature laboratory (ProSPA) package designed to drill beneath the lunar polar surface, extract samples, measure cold-trapped volatiles such as water ice and test oxygen extraction from regolith. It was built for Russia's Luna-27 lander until ESA ended lunar cooperation with Roscosmos in April 2022, when ESA expected a 2025 CLPS flight; it is now assigned to Intuitive Machines' IM-4 flight to Mons Mouton (NASA task order CP-22), which NASA lists for 2027.

Objective. Drill into polar regolith, extract samples and determine the origin and abundance of cold-trapped volatiles; test oxygen extraction from regolith.

This is one payload. It does not inherit the carrier mission's outcome.

Targeted

See Mons Mouton on the 3D Moon

Facts

Kind: Payload
Carried by: Intuitive Machines IM-4 (Nova-C lander, NASA CLPS task order CP-22)
Mission type: Prospecting
Target: MoonMons Mouton, lunar south pole regionOn the Moon map: Mons Mouton
Launch: Planned 2027 (target)
Announcement date not recorded. Record checked 2026-10-31.
Phase: ManifestedESA's 2026 video page (not reachable on 2026-10-28) and NASA's CP-22 page name PROSPECT on IM-4; NASA's IM-4 page, rechecked 2026-10-28, still lists 2027.
Outcome: Not applicable
Why it is included: Carries a resource instrument

What comes next

Next recorded dates are plans, not results.

Launch: Planned 2027 (target)Announcement date not recorded. Record checked 2026-10-31.

Participants

Operators, payload owners, carriers and customers are recorded separately.

Organization	Role
European Space Agency	Payload owner
Intuitive Machines	Carrier
National Aeronautics and Space Administration	Customer
The Open University	Payload builder

Resources and evidence

Resource	Evidence
Water ice	Targeted
Volatiles	Targeted
Oxygen	Targeted

Open evidence gaps

ESA's own PROSPECT pages (esa.int articles and the 2026 video page) returned HTTP 403 on 2026-10-28; the flight assignment was rechecked through NASA pages only.
Name expansion differs: NASA's CP-22 page uses '... Exploration, Commercial exploitation and Transportation'; ESA's 2026 page uses '... Exploration, Characterisation & Testing'.
The Open University's payload-builder role is limited to developing/providing the ProSPA instrument as a key subcontractor within the PROSPECT package. It does not establish sole construction, payload ownership or prime contractorship. The 2024 paper names Leonardo as consortium lead; no Leonardo organization profile is added here.

Record history

changes to this record's facts, newest first

Changed	Field	Was	Now	Reason	Source
2026-10-31	participants	No Open University instrument-provider role recorded.	The Open University develops/provides ProSPA as a key subcontractor within PROSPECT.	Source update	[9]
2026-10-05	carrier mission		msn-intuitive-machines-im-4	Source update	[4]
2022-04-13	carrier mission	Luna-27 (Roscosmos lander)	NASA CLPS delivery (2025 expected)	Source update	[6]

Sources

9 excerpts from 6 publications

One web address counts as one publication.

[1]Prospect mission animation
European Space AgencyGovernment recordPublished 2026-06Accessed 2026-09-25Supports: phase, carrier mission, participants
Prospect will reach the lunar surface with the Intuitive Machines' Nova-C lunar lander on the IM-4 mission
Quote matched the source text when accessed.
[2]Prospect mission animation
European Space AgencyGovernment recordPublished 2026-06Accessed 2026-09-25Supports: objective, resources, why it is included
The mini lab will also test in-situ resource utilisation, such as oxygen extraction from lunar regolith
Quote matched the source text when accessed.
[3]CLPS CP-22 Science
NASA ScienceGovernment recordAccessed 2026-10-31Supports: phase, objective, participants
We will use PROSPECT and L-CIRiS to help locate nearby chemical compounds that could provide water, oxygen, fuel, and building materials
Quote matched the source text when accessed.
[4]Moon Base: Intuitive Machines IM-4
NASAGovernment recordAccessed 2026-10-31Supports: target site, carrier mission
Intuitive Machines' IM-4 will deliver science and technology to Mons Mouton near the Moon's South Pole
Quote matched the source text when accessed.
[5]ESA Ends Lunar Cooperation with Russia, Turns to NASA, Commercial Partners
SpacePolicyOnline.comPressPublished 2022-04-13Accessed 2026-10-28Supports: record history
Luna-27 is another lander that was to use the PILOT precision navigation and landing system and deliver the PROSPECT drill and mass spectrometer to find and analyze subsurface water ice and other chemicals.
Quote matched the source text when accessed.
[6]ESA Ends Lunar Cooperation with Russia, Turns to NASA, Commercial Partners
SpacePolicyOnline.comPressPublished 2022-04-13Accessed 2026-10-28Supports: record history
The drill, being built by Leonardo, will fly on the 2025 CLPS mission
Quote matched the source text when accessed.
[7]ESA Space Resources Strategy
European Space AgencyGovernment recordPublished 2019-05Accessed 2026-10-31Supports: summary
The first utilisation of space resources will be on the Moon; a source of water, oxygen, metals and other materials.
Quote matched the source text when accessed.
[8]Moon Base: Intuitive Machines IM-4
NASAGovernment recordAccessed 2026-10-31Supports: launch date
Moon Base: Intuitive Machines IM-4 When 2027
Quote matched the source text when accessed.
[9]PROSPECT: A comprehensive sample acquisition and analysis package for lunar science and exploration
Frontiers in Space TechnologiesPeer-reviewedPublished 2024-04-03Accessed 2026-10-31Supports: participants, open evidence gaps, record history
The ProSPA instrument is provided by key subcontractor The Open University (United Kingdom)
Quote matched the source text when accessed.

Cite this record

SpaceMiningData, “PROSPECT (Package for Resource Observation, in-Situ Prospecting for Exploration, Characterisation & Testing)”, dataset version a00fa2c68a45, built 2026-11-11, https://spaceminingdata.com/missions/esa-prospect.html. Record checked 2026-10-31.