Lockheed, Northrop & Boeing: Manufacturers Behind Artemis II

NASA's Artemis II’s Orion craft has been created by Lockheed Martin and is expected to launch aboard a rocket in April 2026. 

The Artemis II flight is the first crewed mission of the Artemis Program, which is a key step towards long-term return flights to the moon. It will test NASA’s current deep space capabilities and Space Launch System (SLS).

Orion is the most advanced deep space craft ever developed. 

The development of the spacecraft and systems needed for a successful launch has been a collaborative effort between some of the US’s major manufacturers including Aerojet Rocketdyne, Boeing, Amentum, Jacobs, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman and SpaceX.

Lockheed Martin

Lockheed Martin is NASA’s primary contractor for the Orion spacecraft leading the design, development testing and production of the Orion spacecraft for NASA’s Artemis missions.

It has worked on its advanced propulsion and launch abort systems to cutting-edge avionics, rigorous ground testing and precision docking capabilities.

Lisa Callahan, former Vice President and General Manager of Commercial Civil Space at Lockheed Martin, says: "Orion is a new class of spaceship, uniquely designed for long-duration deep space flight, that will return astronauts to the Moon and eventually take the first humans to Mars, and bring them all back safely.

"Orion will accelerate scientific discovery of our solar system and will be the cornerstone of the defining space achievement of this era."

Lockheed Martin is continuing to develop and assemble Orion spacecraft for future Artemis missions, including III, IV and V.

Northrop Grumman

Northrop Grumman is a prime contractor for the SLS. It also produces the launch abort motor and the attitude control motor for the Orion spacecraft’s launch abort system (LAS). 

Working with its subcontractor Thales Alenia Space Italia, Northrop Gruman designs and develops the habitation and logistics outpost. This is one of two gateway habitation modules where astronauts will live, conduct science and prepare for missions to the lunar surface.

Adam Lyons, Chief Engineer for the LAS Abort Motor at Northrop Grumman, says: "After the vehicle is launched and you're flying through the first portion of the mission, you're not only overcoming gravity with that massive amount of fuel, you're also facing aerodynamic forces, with the atmosphere pushing back on the vehicle, wanting to slow it down and break it.

 "We need a way to get away from the launch vehicle if something were to go wrong."

Aerojet Rocketdyne

Aerojet Rocketdyne, a subsidiary of American defence company L3Harris, is one of NASA’s primary contractors for SLS.

It provides eight auxiliary engines and 12 reaction control thrusters for the Orion crew module, as well as the jettison motor for the LAS. 

Aerojet Rocketdyne also manufactures the high-pressure helium tanks that inflate Orion’s flotation system.

John Honeycutt, SLS Program Manager at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Centre, says: “This contract allows NASA to work with Aerojet Rocketdyne to build the rocket engines needed for future missions.

“The same reliable engines that launched more than 100 space shuttle missions have been modified to be even more powerful to launch the next astronauts who will set foot on the lunar surface during the Artemis missions.”

The contract it has with NASA also will allow for the procurement of additional engines for other NASA exploration programs.

A vast global project

The full list of contractors includes Axiom Space, Bechtel, Blue Origin, Boeing, Amentum, Jacobs, Lanteris Space Systems (Maxar Space Systems), Northrop Grumman and SpaceX. 

Orion’s European Service Module is built by its main contractor Airbus. The project also includes collaboration with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, Canadian Space Agency and the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre of the United Arab Emirates.

The project has more than 2,700 suppliers across 47 US states contributing to the lunar spaceport at NASA’s Kennedy Space Centre, Orion, the SLS rocket, Gateway space station, human landing systems and spacesuits and mobility systems tailored for the Moon.

The technologies and manufacturing in the process behind the Artemis spacecraft and its ground operations will facilitate NASA’s planned missions to deep space, to the Moon and eventually to Mars.