Potomac Database Systems has unveiled plans to develop a series of lunar missions aimed at collecting and selling scientific and operational data from the Moon.
The Washington-based company said it intends to focus on supplying commercial and government customers with lunar surface data through three different mission concepts designed to support future exploration and development efforts.
The first concept, called Compass, would involve a satellite deploying an impactor onto the lunar surface and studying the resulting debris plume.
The mission is similar in concept to NASA’s LCROSS mission, which confirmed the presence of water on the Moon in 2009.
Potomac’s second planned system, Pathfinder, is described as a ballistic surface node capable of surviving impact with the lunar surface and transmitting data after landing.
The third platform, named Source, is a rover intended to traverse large areas of the Moon over missions lasting at least one year.
To survive the extreme cold of the lunar night, the rover would use a specially designed garage heated by a radioisotope heating unit (RHU).
Potomac said its strategy focuses on using relatively low-cost systems to increase the availability of lunar surface data as interest in commercial lunar activity expands.
Jacob Matthews, chief executive of Potomac Database Systems, said companies competing for lunar contracts are currently relying on largely shared public datasets.
“Everybody’s…working from the same public database,” Matthews said.
“But our bet is that you would invest a couple hundred thousand—or a million—dollars into getting novel datasets that differentiates your proposals from your competitors,” he added.
Matthews said lunar data currently commands high commercial value.
In September, NASA paid an additional $10 million to acquire 120 gigabytes of data from Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost Mission 1.
“The product of the lunar economy today is data, and it is very expensive,” Matthews said.
“The lunar economy will not scale if every dataset requires a dedicated mission,” he added.
Potomac aims to launch its first commercially funded Source rover mission to the Cabeus Crater near the Moon’s south pole as early as 2028.
The company has also partnered with the University of Dayton Research Institute on a proposal under NASA’s PRISM programme for future government-supported lunar missions in the 2030s.
In parallel, Potomac announced a request for information seeking proposals for a commercial radioisotope heating unit for the first Source mission.
Matthews previously co-founded Zeno Power, which develops radioisotope power systems for space applications.
He said mission timing would be a key factor in selecting a heating system supplier.
“I’m proud of the work that we had done [at Zeno]. But this really comes down to schedule,” Matthews said.
“I would like to launch Source…the sooner the better,” he added.
The initiative reflects growing commercial interest in lunar data services as companies prepare for increased activity linked to scientific exploration, resource prospecting and future Artemis programme operations.
