HAWTHORNE, Calif. - Interlune in Seattle, and Astrolab in Hawthorne, Calif., announced they are working together to integrate Interlune excavation technology onto the Astrolab Flexible Logistics and Exploration Vehicle (FLEX), with hardware testing planned in Houston.
"Reliable, autonomous mobility is crucial to the Interlune harvesting system and broader lunar infrastructure development," said Rob Meyerson, co-founder and CEO of Interlune. "Astrolab's FLEX is the right vehicle for the job."
Hunt for helium-3
The project represents a step toward operationalizing Interlune’s system to harvest industrial quantities of natural resources from space, beginning with helium-3, which will require a fleet of lunar rovers. Mobilized excavation technology will also serve commercial and government customers in Moon base site preparation, including constructing roads, berms, and other structures. Interlune has partnered with Vermeer Corporation to develop technology for high-volume, continuous excavation on the Moon.
Related: NASA STTR funds Interlune lunar trenching and excavation research
"Working with Interlune further differentiates FLEX as the rover of choice for commercial and government Moon missions," said Jaret Matthews, Astrolab founder and CEO. "Interlune's expertise in developing and testing highly specialized regolith simulant will further enhance FLEX's ability to mitigate dust and operate in extreme environments."
Prototyping
Prototype testing will take place in Houston, where both companies maintain research and development facilities. Astrolab was the first company to lease testing space at the Texas A&M University Space Institute, currently under construction at NASA's Johnson Space Center.
This work continues the ongoing collaboration between Interlune and Astrolab. In August 2025, Interlune announced plans to include a multispectral camera on Astrolab's FLEX Lunar Innovation Platform (FLIP) for an upcoming Moon mission. The camera, developed in partnership with NASA, will be used to estimate helium-3 quantities and concentrations in lunar regolith.
Both founded in 2020, Interlune and Astrolab are part of a new generation of space companies developing technologies with commercial and government applications.
Interlune technology will establish the backbone for dual-use lunar infrastructure and commercializing natural resources from space. Astrolab is pioneering new approaches to explore and operate on distant planetary bodies, designing, building, and operating a fleet of multi-purpose commercial planetary rovers to extend humanity’s presence in the solar system.
