The partnership is designed to support the development of an integrated lunar communications and navigation network capable of delivering secure, reliable and interoperable services for future commercial and institutional missions.
Leonardo, Telespazio and US-based space company Intuitive Machines have entered into a strategic cooperation agreement aimed at developing interoperable infrastructure and delivering communications and navigation services to support future lunar exploration missions.
The agreement establishes a framework for collaboration among the companies to promote and enhanceinteroperability between their respective infrastructures: the European Lunar Communication and Navigation System (LCNS) developed by Telespazio as part of the European Space Agencys (ESA) Moonlight programme, and Intuitive Machines Space Data Network (SDN), which is used to manage NASAs Near Space Network Services (NSNS) programme.
Massimo Claudio Comparini, Managing Director of Leonardos Space Division, said: “This agreement with Intuitive Machines marks a major step toward establishing a sustainable operational framework on the Moon, enabling future robotic and human missions from the United States, Europe, and beyond to access a robust communications network and high?precision navigation services while operating in the lunar environment. Leonardo, together with Telespazio and Thales Alenia Space, further strengthens its role in space exploration, along with lunar infrastructure, robotics, planetary communications and services already under development for several international programmes.”
Steve Altemus, Co-founder and CEO of Intuitive Machines, added: “Resilient, secure, and scalable space infrastructure and space data networks are vital to customers who want to push farther on the lunar surface and beyond to Mars. Through our collaboration with Leonardo and Telespazio, Intuitive Machines is becoming an interoperable part of Europes space effort, enabling the retrieval and use of space data at minimal latency. This capability drives more responsive operations, faster coordination, and greater autonomy across exploration and science, building on the foundation we have established in the United States through our management of NASAs Near Space Data Network.”
The goal of the collaboration is to foster the creation of an integrated lunar communication and navigation networkcapable of providing secure, reliable, and interoperable services to support future commercial and institutional lunar space missions and the development of a lunar ecosystem economy. The agreement provides for cooperation across several areas: joint development of LCNSSDN interoperability solutions; the definition of coordinated commercial strategies for integrated service delivery; design and development of interoperable user terminals; and collaboration on infrastructure deployment. These efforts aim to advance lunar communications and navigation infrastructure and services and to support international coordination of lunar communications standards.
