HAMPTON, Va. - The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Langley Research Center (LaRC) is seeking industry, academic, and government partners to collaborate on a proposal for an autonomous robotic construction demonstration to support future lunar surface infrastructure.
The effort supports the Demonstration in the Lunar Environment of Autonomous Robotic Construction, or DiLE-ARCon, project under NASA’s Early Career Initiative sponsored by the Space Technology Mission Directorate. The initiative was released 13 January 2026 and focuses on advancing autonomous construction technologies needed to establish a sustained human presence on the Moon.
Officials say future lunar missions will require infrastructure such as radiation shelters, plume ejecta barriers, and power and communications towers. NASA intends to demonstrate that such structures can be assembled autonomously by robotic systems prior to astronaut arrival, reducing risk and freeing crews to focus on science and exploration.
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DiLE-ARCon initiative
As part of DiLE-ARCon, NASA Langley plans to conduct a Technology Readiness Level 6 demonstration in fiscal year 2028 using flight-like robotic and computing hardware. The demonstration would take place in a vacuum chamber with lunar regolith simulant, realistic terrain features, and representative lighting conditions. The autonomous system would construct a structure such as a plume ejecta barrier using mass-efficient materials and vacuum-rated joining methods, including laser beam welding, friction stir welding, or mechanical attachment.
Two systems sought
NASA is seeking partners to provide at least one of two primary robotic systems for the demonstration: a robotic manipulator or a robotic mobility platform. The manipulator must have at least six degrees of freedom, a one-meter reach, and a 10-kilogram payload capacity, and be capable of performing autonomous assembly tasks in a vacuum and regolith environment. The mobility system must support a robotic arm and payload, operate on uneven terrain with grades up to 20 percent, provide wireless communications, and run on battery power for at least four hours.
Integrated mobility and manipulator systems will also be considered. Temperature will not be a controlled variable during testing.
According to the solicitation, a key objective of the project is to demonstrate modularity and interoperability among multiple robotic agents, enabling collaborative construction, repair, and upgrade of lunar surface infrastructure while minimizing non-recurring engineering costs for future missions.
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Participation in the partnering opportunity is open to U.S. and non-U.S. organizations, including industry, educational institutions, nonprofit organizations, and government agencies. Non-U.S. participation is subject to NASA’s no-exchange-of-funds policy, under which each government supports its own participants and costs.
Selected partners would be expected to contribute technical data, system designs, integration support, and cost estimates at no cost to NASA during the proposal development phase. If the proposal is selected, NASA Langley anticipates issuing contracts or other agreements to perform the work.
The agency says its partner selection will be based on technical approach, qualifications, cost, and the ability to collaborate closely with NASA engineers during system design and testing.
NASA named Esther Lee as the primary point of contact for this project, who can be reached via email at [email protected]. Responses are due no later than 4:30 p.m. Eastern on 18 February 2026. For more information, please visit https://sam.gov/workspace/contract/opp/544a3ed30e0f433a841ed545d2d2d40c/view.
