NASA Awards SpaceX Nearly $3 Billion Contract To Build Moon Lander

In a landmark achievement for NASA's plan to send humans back to the moon, the space agency announced that SpaceX will build a spacecraft to bring astronauts on the lunar surface as early as 2024, National Geographic and other news reported Saturday.

NASA awarded billionaire entrepreneur and Tesla Inc chief executive officer Elon Musk's space company SpaceX a nearly $3 billion contract to build the Artemis lunar lander that will transport the astronauts to the moon, NASA said.

"NASA Rules!!" Musk commented on Twitter following the announcement.

The futuristic-looking vehicle is currently in the prototype phase, with testing being made at an aerospace facility in Texas.

SpaceX beat out Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin and defense contractor Dynetics Inc to bag contract. It was previously expected that NASA would pick two of the companies.

"We should accomplish the next landing as soon as possible... this is an incredible time to be involved in human exploration, for all humanity," NBC News quoted NASA acting administrator Steve Jurczyk as saying.

Revealed in 2017 under the Trump administration, the Artemis program's objective is to return American astronauts to the moon for the first time since the 1972 Apollo 17 mission.

It also aims to land the first woman and the first person of color on lunar soil. The Biden administration has voiced support for the program, as well.

Unlike the Apollo landings from 1969 to 1972, NASA is gearing up to have humans stay longer on the moon as part of a more ambitious plan to send astronauts to Mars. The space agency is leaning heavily on private companies with shared visions for space exploration.

The NASA announcement added to a remarkable run for Musk, who is one of the wealthiest persons in the world thanks to his 22% stake in electric car manufacturer Tesla.