UK firms are helping with lunar return

SPACE COMPANIES in the UK are “leading the way” in developing navigation and telecommunication capabilities to help support future missions to the Moon.

With funding from the UK Space Agency, Surrey Satellite Technology, Inmarsat and MDA UK are among those who have won contracts worth £2m with the European Space Agency (ESA) to put a constellation of satellites around the Moon.

Nasa is planning to return to the Moon by 2024, with help from ESA and other partners.

It intends to set up a small space station in lunar orbit which will be home to astronauts as well as serve as a solar-powered communication hub, science laboratory and holding area for rovers and other robots.

Its success requires reliable navigation and telecommunication capabilities, the ESA said.

Science Minister Amanda Solloway said: “People all over the world will be hugely excited by the upcoming missions to the Moon and I’m proud it is UK space companies who are leading the way in making these become a reality.”

As part of the programme, SSTL Lunar, of Guildford, will lead a consortium to plan how space firms could provide services around the Moon.