PayloadMoonEnded
TENACIOUS micro-rover (ispace-EUROPE)
Micro-rover of about 5 kg built by ispace-EUROPE, with an Epiroc-developed shovel, to scoop and photograph lunar regolith for an in-place ownership transfer to NASA; it was authorized under Luxembourg's 2017 space resources law but was lost aboard the RESILIENCE lander before deployment.
Objective. Use a front-mounted shovel to pick up lunar regolith, photograph it in the scoop, and transfer ownership in place to NASA under ispace-EUROPE's December 2020 USD 5,000 contract.
Targeted
Facts
- Kind
- Payload
- Mission type
- Resource purchase demonstration
- Target
- MoonMare Frigoris (RESILIENCE landing site)
- Launch
- 2025-01-15
- Launch vehicle
- SpaceX Falcon 9
- Phase
- EndedRover was stowed on the RESILIENCE lander, which ispace declared lost on 2025-06-06 (JST); no rover-specific post-mission statement was found.
- Outcome
- FailureBasis: inferred by this dataset
- Why it is included
- Resource transaction
Outcome statement (inferred by this dataset)
As of 8:00 a.m. on June 6, 2025, mission controllers have determined that it is unlikely that communication with the lander will be restored and therefore completing Success 9, is not achievable. It has been decided to conclude the mission.
Participants
Operators, payload owners, carriers and customers are recorded separately.
| Organization | Role |
|---|---|
| ispace EUROPE S.A. | Operator |
| ispace EUROPE S.A. | Payload builder |
| National Aeronautics and Space Administration | Customer |
| Luxembourg Space Agency | Funder |
| ispace, inc. | Carrier |
Resources and evidence
| Resource | Evidence |
|---|---|
| Regolith | Targeted |
Government authorizations
| Country | Holder and mission | Instrument | Granted | Linked mission |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Luxembourg | Luxembourg space resources mission authorisation to ispace EUROPE S.A. for the TENACIOUS micro-rover (2024)Holder: ispace EUROPE S.A. | Space resources authorization | 2024-11-22Granted | TENACIOUS micro-rover (ispace-EUROPE)Flew. Outcome: failure |
Dated events
- 2020-12-03
NASA lunar regolith purchase contract to ispace Europe, $5,000
NASA selected ispace Europe (Luxembourg) to collect lunar regolith and transfer ownership in place to NASA for $5,000. ispace states ispace EUROPE met interim milestones and received a payment in September 2022. The collection was planned with the TENACIOUS rover on Mission 2 under Luxembourg's authorisation; the lander was lost in a likely hard landing on 6 June 2025 and ispace concluded the mission, so no collection took place.
Sources (5) and evidence gaps
NASA has selected four companies to collect space resources and transfer ownership to the agency: Lunar Outpost of Golden, Colorado; Masten Space Systems of Mojave, California; ispace Europe of Luxembourg; and ispace Japan of Tokyo.
ispace Europe proposed collection for $5,000 following arrival in 2023 of a lander to the lunar South Pole.
Companies will receive 10% of their total proposed price upon award, will receive 10% upon launch, and the remaining 80% upon successful completion.
- [4]ispace Receives Interim Payment on Lunar Regolith Transfer Contract from NASA (22 September 2022)
The payment is for achieving milestones in the second contract held by ispace EU.
It has been decided to conclude the mission.
- Amount of the 2022 milestone payment not stated; current contract status after Mission 2 not stated in any retrieved source.
Open evidence gaps
- No ispace-EUROPE statement specific to the rover's fate; outcome inferred from the host lander's loss.
Sources
9 sourceshas obtained a mission authorization under the 2017 Luxembourg Space Resources Law to operate the TENACIOUS Micro Rover during the upcoming ispace, inc. (ispace), Mission 2.
The TENACIOUS Micro Rover, designed for lunar exploration and resource utilization, will execute key operations, including the collection and transfer of ownership of lunar regolith for ispace-EUROPE to execute a 2020 regolith contract signed with NASA.
the micro rover will use a scoop to pick up regolith from the lunar surface, photograph the regolith in the scoop and conduct an "in-place" transfer of ownership of the lunar regolith to NASA.
Once on the lunar surface, operators plan to use the shovel to collect a sample of lunar regolith and photograph the collection with the camera mounted on the rover.
The micro rover is being developed with co-funding from the Luxembourg Space Agency through a European Space Agency contract with the Luxembourg National Space Programme, LuxIMPULSE.
The TENACIOUS micro rover is 26 cm tall, 31.5 cm wide, 54 cm long, and weighs approximately 5 kg.
ispace Europe proposed collection for $5,000 following arrival in 2023 of a lander to the lunar South Pole.
TENACIOUS micro rover : Developed by ispace-EUROPE, this rover will explore the landing site, collect lunar regolith, and relay data back to the lander.
As of 8:00 a.m. on June 6, 2025, mission controllers have determined that it is unlikely that communication with the lander will be restored and therefore completing Success 9, is not achievable. It has been decided to conclude the mission.