With SpaceX Starship, Japan's ispace provides ride-share to the moon
· CNA · JoinRead a summary of this article on FAST.
Get bite-sized news via a new
cards interface. Give it a try.
Click here to return to FAST Tap here to return to FAST
FAST
TOKYO, July 8 : Japanese moon transport company ispace said on Wednesday it would start a new, lower-cost lunar cargo business using the Starship heavy rocket and moon lander developed by Elon Musk's SpaceX.
Tokyo-based ispace has bought 500 kg (1,102 lb) of capacity for $50 million on a Starship that would land on the moon as soon as 2030, and will build a lunar surface vehicle that can host payloads from clients worldwide sharing their ride on Starship to the moon, it said.
The new "lunar access integrator" service provides moon-bound "buses" and can complement ispace's ongoing development of dedicated lunar landers, or "taxis", to the moon's surface, said ispace Executive Vice President Hideari Kamiya.
On previous trips to the moon, ispace used SpaceX's Falcon 9 rockets for unsuccessful lunar touchdown attempts in 2023 and 2025.
CNA Games
Guess Word
Crack the word, one row at a time
Buzzword
Create words using the given letters
Mini Sudoku
Tiny puzzle, mighty brain teaser
Mini Crossword
Small grid, big challenge
Word Search
Spot as many words as you can
Show More
Show Less
The Tokyo-based company now aims to soft-land three landers, called Ultra, onto the moon by 2030, including a mission that is part of NASA's Commercial Lunar Payload Services programme.
While ispace carries on its Ultra missions, the tie-up with SpaceX will "exponentially" accelerate its growth in the lunar infrastructure market, Chief Executive Takeshi Hakamada said.
SpaceX welcomed the expansion of its relationship with ispace to fly missions on Starship, a reusable transportation system which, unlike Falcon 9, includes a spacecraft that Musk's company plans to take to the moon and eventually to Mars.
"Their integration services provide a valuable pathway for smaller payloads to secure a ride to the Moon today, and we look forward to supporting ispace and their customers as they help expand access to the lunar surface," Stephanie Bednarek, SpaceX's vice president of commercial sales, said in a statement.
The relationship is not exclusive. NASA plans to use Starship's first lunar landing in 2028 as part of its Artemis program to send astronauts back to the moon. U.S. lunar rover startup Astrolab has also booked space on a future Starship flight.
"SpaceX approached us first" with the integrator business idea, Hakamada said.
"While we can't rule out other companies entering the market, few might be able to integrate cargo and keep providing services after touching down on the moon."
Newsletter
Week in Review
Subscribe to our Chief Editor’s Week in Review
Our chief editor shares analysis and picks of the week's biggest news every Saturday.
Sign up for our newsletters
Get our pick of top stories and thought-provoking articles in your inbox
Get the CNA app
Stay updated with notifications for breaking news and our best stories
Get WhatsApp alerts
Join our channel for the top reads for the day on your preferred chat app