NASA Media Conference Today (May 31, 1:00 pm EDT): Selection of Commercial Moon Landing Partners.

NASA will hold a media teleconference today (May 31, 2019) at 1:00 pm EDT (17:00 UTC) to announce its selections under the Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program for private industry partners to send the first round of missions to the Moon for data gathering and technology demonstrations to pave the way for the eventual return of humans to the surface, which they say possibly could be by 2024, but I think that sounds overly optimistic.

From the link below:

Paving the way to return astronauts to the surface of the Moon, and ultimately Mars, NASA will announce the selection of the first commercial Moon landing service providers that will deliver science and technology payloads as part of the agency’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS). These missions will acquire new science measurements and enable important technology demonstrations, whose data will inform the development of future landers and other exploration systems needed for astronauts to return to the Moon by 2024.

Source:
NASA to Announce Selection of Science Commercial Moon Landing Services, Hold Media Teleconference



Nine companies had already been selected back in November to participate in providing bids for this work under the CLPS, and the first task was issued to the nine companies by NASA back in March for this first round of missions. The award of those bids is what is being publicly announced today.

Excerpt from March, 2019 press release:

In the latest step to return astronauts to the surface of the Moon, and ultimately Mars, the agency issued its first lunar surface delivery task order to its Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) partners on March 26. All nine companies on CLPS contracts are eligible to competitively bid on sending new payloads to study the Moon for NASA. The agency anticipates making an award in May. In February, the agency selected the first 12 instruments and technology demonstrations in final development across the agency for the early commercial delivery services to the lunar surface. A call for non-agency payloads closed in late February, and NASA plans to announce those awards this spring. Additional details, including a targeted launch date and mission payloads, are expected to be announced at the time of award.

I think the "announced at time of award" mentioned above could mean some of those mission details will be announced today.


I think the link below to a live stream of NASA TV should include the Media conference, but I could be wrong:


If not, then try this link to NASA TV's webpage:
www.nasa.gov...


Additional CLPS info:
Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) Home Page

a reply to: Soylent Green Is People

2024 is very optimistic for commercial purposes, but old news for some, i know they have been sneaking around there for ten years straight, very likely for a longer time already, and i am not talking about the news spectacle about those moon landings.