NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) Initiative

Submitting OIG:

National Aeronautics and Space Administration OIG

Report Description:

NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative was designed to provide rapid, affordable, and frequent payload deliveries to the Moon via commercial lunar landers. In this report, we assessed NASA’s management of the CLPS initiative.

Date Issued:

Thursday, June 6, 2024

Agency Reviewed / Investigated:

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Submitting OIG-Specific Report Number:

IG-24-013

Location(s):

Agency-Wide

Type of Report:

Audit

Questioned Costs:

Funds for Better Use:

Number of Recommendations:

Report updated under NDAA 5274:

Yes

View Document:

Attachment	Size
Final-Report-IG-24-013-NASAs-Commercial-Lunar-Payload-Services-Initiative.pdf	5.54 MB

Additional Details Link:

https://oig.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/final-report-ig-24-013-nasas-com…

Related Open Recommendations

Recommendation Number	Recommendation Status	Significant Recommendation
1	Open	No
Conduct updated market research to assess capability growth across the lunar economy and associated transportation sector since 2017
2	Open	No
Reassess NASA’s role in, and contribution to, the commercial lunar delivery market
3	Open	No
Finalize a management plan with clear leadership authority and responsibility that would delineate CLPS initiative performance goals and metrics that are measurable and targeted, criteria for augmented insight, a formal lessons-learned process, and any other relevant guidelines for the management plan’s implementation
4	Open	No
Prepare and formalize a CLPS Manifest Selection Board charter and processes
5	Open	No
Strengthen procedures to ensure science payload interfaces and requirements are mature enough to write an RFTP that would minimize future requirement changes
6	Open	No
Assess technical implications of the first Peregrine lander failure on VIPER mission delivery success and impact to CLPS’s overall cost and schedule, as applicable

Recommendation Number

Recommendation Status

Significant Recommendation

Additional Details

Open

Conduct updated market research to assess capability growth across the lunar economy and associated transportation sector since 2017

Open

Reassess NASA’s role in, and contribution to, the commercial lunar delivery market

Open

Finalize a management plan with clear leadership authority and responsibility that would delineate CLPS initiative performance goals and metrics that are measurable and targeted, criteria for augmented insight, a formal lessons-learned process, and any other relevant guidelines for the management plan’s implementation

Open

Prepare and formalize a CLPS Manifest Selection Board charter and processes