The Dynetics Autonomous Logistics Platform for All-Moon Cargo Access (ALPACA)—also known as Dynetics HLS—(ILV) is a

human spaceflight Human spaceflight (also referred to as manned spaceflight or crewed spaceflight) is spaceflight with a crew or passengers aboard a spacecraft, often with the spacecraft being operated directly by the onboard human crew. Spacecraft can also be ...

lunar lander A lunar lander or Moon lander is a Lander (spacecraft), spacecraft designed to Moon landing, land on the surface of the Moon. As of 2024, the Apollo Lunar Module is the only lunar lander to have ever been used in human spaceflight, completing s ...

design concept proposed in 2020/21 for the

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the federal government of the United States, US federal government responsible for the United States ...

Human Landing System A Human Landing System (HLS) is a spacecraft in the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration Administrator, National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) Artemis program that is expected to land humans on the Moon. These are being ...

(HLS) component of the

Artemis program The Artemis program is a Exploration of the Moon, Moon exploration program led by the United States' National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), formally established in 2017 via Space Policy Directive 1. The program's stated long-ter ...

Dynetics Dynetics is an American applied science and information technology company headquartered in Huntsville, Alabama. Its primary customers are the United States Department of Defense (DoD), the United States Intelligence Community, and National Ae ...

was the lead contractor for the ALPACA lander—other contractors included

Sierra Nevada Corporation Sierra Nevada Corporation (also styled SNC) is an American aerospace, defense, electronics, engineering and manufacturing corporation that specializes in aircraft modification, integration and other space technologies. The corporation contracts ...

—for NASA's

Artemis Program The Artemis program is a Exploration of the Moon, Moon exploration program led by the United States' National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), formally established in 2017 via Space Policy Directive 1. The program's stated long-ter ...

. The lander concept was initiated in 2019, and in April 2020, Dynetics won a contract from NASA for a year-long design concept study to be completed in early 2021. NASA had intended to subsequently issue build and test contracts to one or two of the three 2020 awardees in order to advance the human landing element of the Artemis Program. In the event, the Dynetics HLS proposal was not selected by NASA in April 2021, and a sole HLS award was won by

SpaceX Space Exploration Technologies Corp., commonly referred to as SpaceX, is an America, American space technology company headquartered at the SpaceX Starbase, Starbase development site in Starbase, Texas. Since its founding in 2002, the compa ...

with the

Starship HLS Starship HLS (Human Landing System) is a lunar lander variant of the Starship spacecraft that is slated to transfer astronauts from a lunar orbit to the surface of the Moon and back. It is being designed and built by SpaceX under the Human Lan ...

proposal. However, Dynetics, together with Blue Origin, protested this decision with the GAO through the S. 1260, also known as the US Innovation and Competitiveness Act. The appeal was unsuccessful, and on 30 July 2021, GAO upheld NASA's choice of SpaceX as the sole recipient of the HLS contract. Dynetics resubmitted their proposal under Appendix N, which covered sustainable lunar landers. On September 14, NASA awarded five companies a contract to advance in the process, with Dynetics receiving a $40.8 million contract. In terms of physical size, the Dynetics design is the smallest of the three proposals funded by

in 2020; however, it is the second largest in terms of development funding secured from NASA. The ALPACA (if ultimately selected) will land and then ascend back into orbit and rendezvous with the NASA Orion or the

Lunar Gateway The Lunar Gateway, or simply Gateway, is a planned space station which is to be assembled in orbit around the Moon. The Gateway is intended to serve as a communication hub, science laboratory, and habitation module for astronauts as part ...

. ALPACA is expected to be subsequently proposed to be used to deliver lunar cargo such as

ISRU In space exploration, in situ resource utilization (ISRU) is the practice of collection, processing, storing and use of materials found or manufactured on other astronomical objects (the Moon, Mars, asteroids, etc.) that replace materials th ...

technology, base modules and pressurized rovers to the surface of the Moon.

History

Dynetics is one of three organizations who developed a NASA-funded lunar lander design for the Artemis program over a year-long period in 2020–2021, starting in May 2020. The milestone-based requirements of the design contract included NASA paying Dynetics US$253 million in design development funding. The other teams selected in 2020 were the '

National Team A national sports team (commonly known as a national team or a national side) is a team that represents a nation, rather than a particular club or region, in an international sport. The term is most commonly associated with team sports, for exa ...

'—led by

Blue Origin Blue Origin Enterprises, L.P. is an American space technology company headquartered in Kent, Washington. The company operates the suborbital New Shepard rocket and the heavy-lift New Glenn rocket. In addition to producing engines for its own ...

but including

Lockheed Martin The Lockheed Martin Corporation is an American Arms industry, defense and aerospace manufacturer with worldwide interests. It was formed by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta on March 15, 1995. It is headquartered in North ...

Northrop Grumman Northrop Grumman Corporation is an American multinational Aerospace manufacturer, aerospace and Arms industry, defense company. With 97,000 employees and an annual revenue in excess of $40 billion, it is one of the world's largest Arms industry ...

, and

Draper Draper was originally a term for a retailer or wholesaler of cloth that was mainly for clothing. A draper may additionally operate as a cloth merchant or a haberdasher. History Drapers were an important trade guild during the medieval period ...

(with US$579 million in NASA design funding) and

(with US$135 million in NASA funding). At the end of the ten-month program on 28 February 2021, NASA had planned to evaluate which contractors would be offered contracts for initial demonstration missions and select firms for development and maturation of their lunar lander system designs. However, on 27 January 2021, NASA informed each of the HLS contractors that the original ten-month program would be extended two months to end on or before 30 April 2021.NextSTEP H: Human Landing System
, NASA, 27 January 2021, retrieved 31 January 2021. In April 2021, NASA rejected the Dynetics HLS design and instead selected

for crewed lunar lander development plus the two lunar demonstration flights, in a contract valued at over several years. There were technical weaknesses identified in the Dynetics proposal which was not selected but also budgetary constraints. Although NASA had previously stated it wanted to contract for multiple dissimilar Human Landing Systems, "only one design was selected for an initial uncrewed demonstration and the first crewed landing, due to significant budget constraints" based on the HLS funds allocated by

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

. NASA has indicated that Dynetics would be free to compete for subsequent missions that are not a part of the initial two demonstration flights.

Design

Crew compartment

The Dynetics HLS vehicle has a low crew cabin making ingress and egress very simple. The crew compartment also includes an integrated

airlock An airlock is a room or compartment which permits passage between environments of differing atmospheric pressure or composition, while minimizing the changing of pressure or composition between the differing environments. An airlock consist ...

to allow for easy EVA's without depressurizing the whole cabin. The crew cabin can be converted into a base module or a pressurized lunar rover. In September 2020 a full-scale mockup of the lander was completed in order to test the interior layout and its ingress / egress capabilities.

Launch vehicle

The ALPACA is designed to be launched on ULA's

Vulcan Centaur Vulcan Centaur is a heavy-lift launch vehicle developed and operated by United Launch Alliance (ULA). It is a two-stage-to-orbit launch vehicle consisting of the Vulcan first stage and the Centaur second stage. Replacing ULA's Atlas V and Del ...

rocket. Vulcan launches the full ALPACA vehicle to NRHO. Four more Vulcan launches carry either a

Centaur A centaur ( ; ; ), occasionally hippocentaur, also called Ixionidae (), is a creature from Greek mythology with the upper body of a human and the lower body and legs of a horse that was said to live in the mountains of Thessaly. In one version o ...

Tanker to refuel the liquid methane, liquid oxygen tanks of the lander or a logistics vehicle (MULE). Alternatively, if available, a

SLS Block 1B The Space Launch System (SLS) is an American super heavy-lift expendable launch vehicle used by NASA. As the primary launch vehicle of the Artemis Moon landing program, SLS is designed to launch the crewed Orion spacecraft on a trans-lunar t ...

could launch the entire fully fueled lunar vehicle into lunar orbit using its

Exploration Upper Stage The Exploration Upper Stage (EUS) is a rocket stage under development for future flights of NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS). Designed for use on the SLS Block 1B and Block 2 configurations, it will replace the Interim Cryogenic Propulsion ...

Reusability

The ALPACA is refueled in lunar orbit in four Vulcan Centaur flights. The ALPACA can be reused for both crewed lunar landings and autonomous cargo landings. The first ALPACA will be reused autonomously after its first crewed landing as a proof of concept for NASA. In order to prevent boil-off, refueling and landing will take place in 2-3 week intervals. Long term, the ALPACA could be refueled from liquid oxygen created in-situ on the surface from lunar water ice.

NASA technical review

The Dynetics HLS scored highest of the proposed landers in NASA's initial technical review in August 2020. The largest issue identified according to NASA is the advanced experimental thrust structure used in the Dynetics design, and that it could pose a threat to the development time as it relies on immature technology. However, in Option A it had the scored the lowest. The largest issue identified was negative mass margins, meaning it wasn't able to carry out the listed mission without decreasing the mass of the lander.

References

{{Reflist Proposed crewed spacecraft Commercial spaceflight Artemis program American spacecraft