FLIP rover

Mission context

Griffin Mission One (Griffin-1) is a NASA CLPS large-lander demonstration flight originally contracted to deliver the VIPER rover to the lunar south pole. Following NASA's cancellation of VIPER in July 2024, the task order was modified: Griffin-1 would instead fly a VIPER-class mass as a lander demonstration, with Astrolab's FLIP rover taking the primary payload position. Astrobotic and Astrolab announced this arrangement in February 2025.

FLIP is the largest payload on Griffin-1, filling the mass slot vacated by VIPER and serving as the mission's primary surface mobility asset. The lander targets the Nobile Region near the lunar south pole, an area of high scientific interest for volatile deposits and a priority zone for NASA's Artemis program. Launch on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy is planned no earlier than 2026; Astrobotic has cited a NET July 2026 date following schedule adjustments.

Design and mobility systems

FLIP is a wheeled, medium-class lunar rover with a mass of approximately 500 kg and a payload-carrying capacity of around 30 kg. Once deployed on the lunar surface, the rover extends to approximately four metres in length. The rover supports semi-autonomous driving and can be operated remotely from Earth.

The rover's most distinctive mobility feature is its use of Venturi Space's hyper-deformable airless wheels. These tyres are engineered to be highly malleable and robust, allowing lunar regolith to dig into the wheel structure to generate traction on soft, irregular polar terrain. The design builds on lessons from Apollo and Mars rover wheel programmes but is rethought for long-term, sustainable surface operations. The same wheel family is planned for the larger FLEX rover.

FLIP is designed for direct egress from the top of the Griffin lander without a dedicated deployment ramp, a feature that simplifies lander integration and broadens compatibility with medium-class commercial landers. Venturi Space supplies a bespoke battery enclosure that allows FLIP to store sufficient energy to survive multiple lunar nights, an important capability for a solar-powered rover operating at high latitudes with extended periods of darkness.

A key objective of the mission is the validation of dust-sealing strategies on wheel actuators and mitigation measures to protect solar arrays, radiators, and other hardware from accumulated lunar dust. FLIP will gather in-situ data on dust deposition and its effects, feeding design decisions for future commercial and Artemis surface infrastructure.

Relationship to the FLEX rover

FLIP is explicitly designed as a technology and operations pathfinder for Astrolab's FLEX (Flexible Logistics and Exploration) rover, which was introduced in 2022. FLIP flies full-sized batteries, hyper-deformable tyres, avionics, sensors, and software that are identical or closely related to the systems planned for FLEX, maturing them through the design–build–test–fly spiral development approach before committing them to a larger, more capable vehicle.

FLEX is a considerably larger rover capable of transporting up to 1,600 kg of cargo and up to two suited astronauts, equipped with a six-degree-of-freedom robotic arm and wheel-on-limb suspension. FLIP reuses many of the same core technologies in a smaller package focused on robotic, autonomous, and small-payload operations. Data gathered by FLIP at the south pole will directly inform FLEX's design for crew support, logistics, construction, and long-range surface mobility on later commercial and Artemis-class missions.

The FLIP rover was unveiled as a development prototype at the 75th International Astronautical Congress in Milan.