ESA taps Thales Alenia Space to build lunar lander

(Reuters) -Thales Alenia Space has won an 862 million euro ($897 million) order from the European Space Agency (ESA) to deliver a lunar lander for moon exploration launches to begin in the 2030s, the firm said on Thursday.

The joint venture between Thales and Leonardo will be tasked with building the Argonaut lunar lander for cargo delivery to the moon, it said in a press release.

"This new element of the Artemis program will serve to facilitate long-duration manned lunar exploration missions," said Thales Alenia Space CEO Hervé Derrey.

The moon will act as a "stepping stone" for human missions into deeper space, with Mars the next destination, Derrey said.

Italy's Leonardo in October called for a new space strategy with partner Thales and their main rival in satellite manufacturing, Airbus.

The Argonaut mission is part of Europe’s contribution to international efforts to return to the moon, notably through the delayed Artemis program.

U.S. space agency NASA established the program during U.S. President Donald Trump's first administration. It represents the flagship U.S. effort to return astronauts to the moon for the first time since 1972.

($1 = 0.9611 euros)

(Reporting by Alban Kacher; editing by Jan Harvey and Jason Neely)