Redwire Camera Technology to Launch Onboard Firefly Aerospace Blue Ghost Lunar Lander’s First Robotic Moon Mission to Deliver NASA Science
Credit: Firefly Aerospace
Redwire Corporation (NYSE: RDW), a leader in space infrastructure for the next generation space economy, announced that its flight-proven camera technology will launch onboard Firefly’s Blue Ghost lunar lander for their first mission to the Moon. Redwire delivered 12 flight cameras, a vision navigation processor, and two flight floodlights for the Blue Ghost lander. This technology will play a crucial role in the landing and other key mission milestones.
“Redwire is proud to be heading back to the Moon as a trusted supplier for Firefly’s Blue Ghost lunar lander as we continue to pave the way for discovery and science on the lunar surface,” said Adam Biskner, President of Redwire Space Systems. “Redwire’s flight-proven camera systems have proven to be a critical component for civil and commercial lunar missions, and we look forward to continuing to build on this heritage.”
Redwire’s camera system for Blue Ghost Mission 1 provides wide fields of view, color, and monochrome imagery to support spacecraft operations throughout the mission. The navigation cameras will provide data crucial for terrain relative navigation operations to help enable the lander to touch down on the lunar surface autonomously during final descent. The floodlights will assist with object detection on the lunar surface.
Firefly’s Blue Ghost Mission 1 is part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative. Through the CLPS initiative, commercial partners develop science and technology payloads for use on the lunar surface to support scientific and commercial activity on the Moon. The mission is set to launch from Kennedy Space Center no earlier than mid-January 2025
Redwire’s camera technology leverages decades of flight heritage to deliver proven space domain awareness capability for civil, commercial, and national security space mission applications. Redwire’s cameras were used onboard NASA’s Artemis I mission and have supported other NASA CLPS missions. Last year, Redwire was awarded a contract to deliver nine flight cameras, two flight floodlights, and a vision navigation processor for Firefly’s Blue Ghost Mission 2 lunar lander.