MAGPIE (Mission for Advanced Geophysics and Polar Ice Exploration) rover
ESA-funded lunar rover mission, with ispace-EUROPE as mission prime, to investigate water ice, other volatiles and regolith properties near the lunar south pole using an instrumented drill with volatile analyzer, a neutron spectrometer and ground-penetrating radar; launch is planned for 2029 on ispace Mission 4. ESA awarded the EUR 65 million Phase 2 contract in July 2026.
Objective. Characterise the distribution and stability of water ice and other volatiles and map hydrogen in the lunar south polar region to assess their resource potential.
This is one payload. It does not inherit the carrier mission's outcome.
Facts
- Kind
- Payload
- Mission type
- Prospecting
- Target
- Moonlunar south polar regionSouth polar region, no point: Lunar south pole missions
- Launch
- Planned 2029 (target)Announcement date not recorded. Record checked 2026-10-28.
- Phase
- ManifestedScoped transport-status review on 2026-11-01: ispace-EUROPE's July contract announcement includes transportation to the lunar surface in the funded full-mission delivery, and its September signing release explicitly assigns MAGPIE to ispace Mission 4 ULTRA in 2029. Manifested here means a named contracted carrier arrangement; it does not mean flight readiness, a launch-provider manifest or launch. The 2029 target is unchanged. Historical schedule review on 2026-11-04: ispace’s 10 September 2025 announcement targeted a 2028 launch window; its 2 September 2026 announcement schedules launch in 2029. The history date identifies that later announcement, not the date a schedule decision was made. This scoped history review does not renew the whole-record check date.
- Outcome
- Not applicable
- Why it is included
- Stated resource objective
How this launch date changed
Recorded change: the plan before → the plan after, oldest first.
- 2026-09-02: 2028 (launch window, ispace September 2025) → 2029 (scheduled launch, ispace September 2026)Source update [10]
Only changes recorded here are listed. The oldest date shown may not be the first plan ever announced, and a date with no recorded change may still have moved. A plan is not a launch.
What comes next
Next recorded dates are plans, not results.
Launch: Planned 2029 (target)Announcement date not recorded. Record checked 2026-10-28.
Participants
Operators, payload owners, carriers and customers are recorded separately.
| Organization | Role |
|---|---|
| ispace EUROPE S.A. | Operator |
| ispace EUROPE S.A. | Payload builder |
| European Space Agency | Customer |
| European Space Agency | Funder |
| ispace, inc. | Carrier |
Resources and evidence
| Resource | Evidence |
|---|---|
| Water ice | Targeted |
| Volatiles | Targeted |
Dated events
- 2026-07-24
ESA MAGPIE Phase 2 contract to ispace-EUROPE (EUR 65 million)
ispace-EUROPE announced that ESA awarded it the EUR 65 million Phase 2 contract covering MAGPIE rover and payload development, transport to the lunar surface and surface operations, with ispace-EUROPE as mission prime; the signing was marked at ESA's Space for Inspiration event on 2026-09-01.
Sources (4) and evidence gaps
The contract, valued at €65 million, funds the full remaining delivery of the MAGPIE mission, including rover and payload development, manufacture, testing, transportation to the lunar surface and lunar surface operations.
ESA has agreed to funding the development and flight of MAGPIE, Europe's first lunar polar ice exploration rover, led by ispace-EUROPE
It follows ESA's July 2026 award of the €65 million Phase 2 contract to ispace-EUROPE.
ispace-EUROPE has been awarded a €65 million contract by the European Space Agency (ESA) to lead the development and execution of the MAGPIE mission.
- ESA's own page (esa.int) returned HTTP 403; basis kept as announced rather than official_award.
- 2025-06-03
ESA MAGPIE pre-Phase A and Phase 1 contracts to ispace-EUROPE (EUR 2.695 million aggregate)
ispace-EUROPE announced a Phase 1 extension of its ESA pre-Phase A contract (awarded 2024-12-12) for the MAGPIE polar-ice rover mission; the two phases total EUR 2,695,000.
Company statements only. No independent or government source is recorded here.
Sources (1) and evidence gaps
ispace's MAGPIE concept was selected and awarded a pre-phase A contract on Dec. 12, 2024. Under the Phase 1 extension agreement, ispace-EUROPE will collaborate with ESA on the implementation of the lunar exploration mission. In aggregate, the value of the contracts for the two phases is €2,695,000
- ESA-side contract record not retrieved.
Open evidence gaps
- ESA's own MAGPIE article remained HTTP 403 on 2026-11-01 and is not used as quote-confirmed evidence. This scoped transport classification rests on ispace-EUROPE's captured contract and named-carrier statements; a launch-provider manifest and completed flight are not established.
Record history
changes to this record's facts, newest first
Sources
11 excerpts from 4 publicationsOne web address counts as one publication.
The contract, valued at €65 million, funds the full remaining delivery of the MAGPIE mission, including rover and payload development, manufacture, testing, transportation to the lunar surface and lunar surface operations.
MAGPIE is scheduled to fly aboard ispace's Mission 4 lunar lander in 2029.
ESA has agreed to funding the development and flight of MAGPIE, Europe's first lunar polar ice exploration rover, led by ispace-EUROPE
will investigate the Moon's south polar region - focusing on the distribution and stability of water ice and other lunar volatiles, as well as the properties of the regolith.
The mission will travel to the Moon's south polar region to investigate the presence of water ice, map the distribution of hydrogen, and study the geological history of this unique environment.
The Open University, United Kingdom - providing an Ion Trap Mass Spectrometer Volatile Analyzer
ispace's MAGPIE concept was selected and awarded a pre-phase A contract on Dec. 12, 2024. Under the Phase 1 extension agreement, ispace-EUROPE will collaborate with ESA on the implementation of the lunar exploration mission. In aggregate, the value of the contracts for the two phases is €2,695,000
MAGPIE’s transport onboard Mission 4 is enabled through collaboration between ESA and JAXA.
The contract, valued at €65 million, funds the full remaining delivery of the MAGPIE mission, including rover and payload development, manufacture, testing, transportation to the lunar surface and lunar surface operations.
MAGPIE, Europe’s first lunar surface exploration mission scheduled to launch in 2029 on board ispace inc.’s Mission 4 ULTRA lunar lander
The mission is targeting a launch window in 2028, bringing Europe closer to delivering a world-first scientific exploration of the Moon’s polar regions.
Cite this record
SpaceMiningData, “MAGPIE (Mission for Advanced Geophysics and Polar Ice Exploration) rover”, dataset version a00fa2c68a45, built 2026-11-11, https://spaceminingdata.com/missions/ispace-europe-magpie.html. Record checked 2026-10-28.