CubeRover

CubeRover is a class of small, modular lunar surface rovers developed by Astrobotic Technology (Pittsburgh, PA) in partnership with Carnegie Mellon University, available in 2U/4U/6U form factors weighing as little as ~4 kg. CubeRover-1 completed its acceptance test campaign in June 2025 and is flight-ready for the Griffin Mission One (Griffin-1) launch targeting late 2026 on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy to the lunar south pole. The rover's primary navigation mode is teleoperated with autonomous safeguards, using a visual-inertial system and the Spacefarer™ Mission Control platform for real-time commanding; autonomous docking and GPS-denied navigation capabilities are under development via a NASA Tipping Point-funded Bosch partnership. The program represents 16 years of development, 37 contracts, and over $20M in funding, with the BEACON mission demonstration planned as its first lunar operational test.