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Lunar Space Station Module Will Journey to US ahead of NASA’s Artemis IV Moon Mission


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Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)

A large cylindrical module is suspended by red straps as it is lowered onto a stand in a cleanroom at Thales Alenia Space in Turin, Italy. Engineers and technicians in white lab coats and helmets observe and guide the process from an elevated platform. The cleanroom features metal walkways and bright overhead lighting.
Technicians at Thales Alenia Space in Turin, Italy, lower Gateway’s HALO (Habitation and Logistics Outpost) onto a stand in the cleanroom.
Thales Alenia Space

When NASA’s Artemis IV astronauts journey to the Moon, they will make the inaugural visit to Gateway, humanity’s first space station in lunar orbit. Shown here, technicians carefully guide HALO (Habitation and Logistics Outpost)—a foundational element of Gateway—onto a stand in the cleanroom at Thales Alenia Space in Turin, Italy. The element’s intricate structure, designed to support astronauts and science in lunar orbit, has entered the cleanroom after successfully completing a series of rigorous environmental stress tests.

In the cleanroom, technicians will make final installations before preparing the module for transport to the United States, a key milestone on its path to launch. This process includes installing and testing valves and hatches, performing leak checks, and integrating external secondary structures. Once these steps are finished, the module will be packaged for shipment to Gilbert, Arizona, where Northrop Grumman will complete its outfitting.

Gateway's Habitation and Logistics Outpost, a large cylindrical module, is suspended by red straps in a cleanroom at Thales Alenia Space in Turin, Italy. Engineers and technicians in white lab coats and helmets observe and guide the process. The cleanroom features metal walkways and bright overhead lighting.
Technicians at Thales Alenia Space in Turin, Italy, oversee the HALO module’s transfer to the cleanroom.
Thales Alenia Space

As one of Gateway’s four pressurized modules, HALO will provide Artemis astronauts with space to live, work, conduct scientific research, and prepare for missions to the lunar surface. The module will also support internal and external science payloads, including a space weather instrument suite attached via a Canadian Space Agency Small Orbital Replacement Unit Robotic Interface, host the Lunar Link communications system developed by European Space Agency, and offer docking ports for visiting vehicles, including lunar landers and NASA’s Orion spacecraft.

Developed in collaboration with industry and international partners, Gateway is a cornerstone of NASA’s Artemis campaign to advance science and exploration on and around the Moon in preparation for the next giant leap: the first human missions to Mars.

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