It seems NASA's ice-hunting VIPER rover won't be hitching a ride to the moon as a part of a private sector partnership, as the space agency had previously sought.
The Volatiles Investigating Polar Explorer Rover (VIPER) has had a rocky, uncertain year. NASA announced its cancellation last summer over budget concerns, then opened a solicitation request for private sector partnerships in an attempt to get VIPER to the moon at no additional cost to the government. On Wednesday (May 7), NASA announced the cancellation of that search, and thanked the companies that submitted proposals.
