NASA to Demonstrate New Autonomous Navigation System on Moon

NASA to Demonstrate New Autonomous Navigation System on Moon

Demonstrating autonomous navigation, the Lunar Node 1 experiment, or LN-1, is a radio beacon designed to support precise geolocation and navigation observations to orbiters, landers, and surface personnel, digitally confirming their positions on the Moon relative to other craft, ground stations, or rovers on the move. The system is designed to operate as part of a broader navigation infrastructure, anchored by a series of satellites in lunar orbit as being procured under NASA’s Lunar Communications Relay and Navigation Systems Project. Together, future versions of LN-1 would utilize LunaNet-defined standards to provide interoperable navigation reference signals from surface beacons as well as orbital assets.

Learn more about the Lunar Communications Relay and Navigation Systems (LCRNS) Project: 

https://tempo.gsfc.nasa.gov/projects/LCRNS

https://www.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/lunar-communications-and-navigation-architecture.pdf

NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative allows NASA to send science investigations and technology demonstrations to the lunar surface. Under Artemis, NASA will study more of the Moon than ever before, and CLPS will demonstrate how NASA is working with commercial companies to achieve robotic lunar exploration.

Learn more about CLPS:

https://www.nasa.gov/content/commercial-lunar-payload-services

Video Credit: NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC)

Producer: Alex Russell

Editor: Jonathan Deal

Duration: 2 minutes

Release Date: Feb. 7, 2024

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