aa851bd810
- Source: inbox/queue/2026-04-28-nasa-lift1-lunar-oxygen-extraction-rfi-no-contract.md - Domain: space-development - Claims: 2, Entities: 1 - Enrichments: 4 - Extracted by: pipeline ingest (OpenRouter anthropic/claude-sonnet-4.5) Pentagon-Agent: Astra <PIPELINE>
1.8 KiB
NASA LIFT-1 (Lunar Infrastructure Foundational Technologies-1)
Type: NASA technology demonstration program
Focus: Lunar in-situ resource utilization (ISRU) — oxygen extraction from lunar soil and rocks
Status: Pre-contract (RFI stage as of April 2026)
Parent Organization: NASA Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD)
Overview
LIFT-1 is NASA's planned lunar ISRU demonstration program focused on extracting oxygen from lunar regolith and rocks to inform eventual production, capture, and storage systems for propellant and life support.
Timeline
- 2023-11 — NASA STMD issued Request for Information (RFI) seeking industry input on competitive funding approach for lunar ISRU oxygen extraction demonstration mission
- 2026-04 — No contract award announced; program remains at pre-contract RFI stage 2.5 years after solicitation
Technical Scope
Primary objective: Demonstrate technologies to extract oxygen from lunar soil and rocks. This addresses the critical extraction step in the ISRU value chain between resource characterization (VIPER, LUPEX) and propellant production/storage.
Power requirement: ~10 kW per kg of oxygen produced (addressed separately by NASA-DoE fission power system development).
Program Context
LIFT-1 represents the extraction demonstration layer in NASA's ISRU architecture:
- Characterization: VIPER, LUPEX (funded, scheduled)
- Extraction demonstration: LIFT-1 (unfunded, no contract)
- Production/storage: Conceptual (no funded programs)
As of April 2026, no space agency or commercial entity has a funded lunar ISRU extraction demonstration mission scheduled for the 2028-2032 window.
Sources
- NASA STMD LIFT-1 RFI (November 2023)
- NASA ISRU program documentation
- SpaceNews coverage of lunar technologies