DEPS-SSB-24-06
NASA-commissioned NASEM study identifying non-polar Artemis IV/V landing sites; reports H2 2026.
Last refreshed: 14 April 2026 · Appears in 1 active topic
If this report finds no good alternatives to the south pole, what does NASA say when China's rover is already there?
Timeline for DEPS-SSB-24-06
Progressed toward H2 2026 report identifying non-polar Artemis IV and V landing sites
Artemis II Moon Mission: Non-polar sites, AVATAR tissue in review- What is the NASEM study on Artemis landing sites?
- DEPS-SSB-24-06 is a NASA-commissioned study asking the National Academies to identify non-polar lunar landing sites for Artemis IV and V, driven by the overlap between Artemis and China's Chang'e 7 at Shackleton crater.Source: NASA
- Could Artemis land somewhere other than the Moon's south pole?
- That is exactly what NASEM study DEPS-SSB-24-06 is assessing. It will report in H2 2026 and its findings will directly influence the Artemis IV site selection.Source: NASA
- Is it legal for American and Chinese spacecraft to land at the same spot on the Moon?
- The 1967 Outer Space Treaty prohibits national appropriation but contains no framework for physical proximity or resource extraction. The legal situation for two nations' hardware at the same landing zone is genuinely unresolved.
Background
DEPS-SSB-24-06 is a study commissioned by NASA from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) through its Space Studies Board. Its specific REMIT is to identify non-polar lunar landing sites that could serve Artemis IV and V, providing NASA with an alternative to Shackleton crater's south-polar terrain. The study is ongoing through H2 2026 and will deliver its report with no public press briefing. The work has become urgent because Chang'e 7 targets the same south-polar zone, and placing US astronauts on a site already occupied by active Chinese robotic hardware raises unresolved legal and political questions under the Outer Space Treaty.
The study identification code follows NASEM's standard format: DEPS is the Division on Engineering and Physical Sciences, SSB is the Space Studies Board sub-body that sponsors it, 24 is the fiscal year of the commission, and 06 is the sequence number within that year's SSB portfolio. The Outer Space Treaty of 1967 contains no property rights framework for resources or physical presence, meaning any overlap between Artemis and Chang'e landing zones is legally ambiguous and practically unprecedented.
The report's findings will carry significant weight in the Artemis IV site-selection process. If NASEM identifies scientifically viable non-polar sites, NASA has external cover to move Artemis IV away from Shackleton. If it does not, the south-pole overlap becomes the baseline assumption, and the political management of that proximity falls to the State Department and NASA leadership.