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The contract was part of the broader framework of two ESA-led mission study teams performing parallel and independent activities to establish the mission concept, considering the ISRU payload (Segment 1), the delivery service (lander, Segment 2) and the communication service (Segment 3).

In this context the scope of the OHB Italia contract activities was related to defining the ISRU Payload.

Human exploratory missions to the Moon or Mars are widely considered as the next logical steps in human space exploration and, lately, settlement. Such space exploration or settlement activities involve humans spending long periods of time in space and, with increasing distance from Earth, no abort possibilities. Crews on such missions have to be self- sufficient, not only concerning food, drink and waste, but also with respect to medical treatment. Health issues are raised by the environmental conditions in space, such as the influence of altered gravity, radiation and isolation.

The main aspect of this study is to investigate the feasibility of the mission concept and the demonstration of the economic viability of a commercial payload delivery service to the Moon, as well as demonstrating the production of water/or oxygen with materials from the Moon. The study considered a payload delivery service that would be an end-to end service from Earth to a targeted location on the Moon, launched not later than 2025.

The study and exploitation of In Situ Resource Utilisation (ISRU) technologies (with an initial focus on the Moon) are stimulating an increasing interest in the international community, both at Agency and industry levels, in view of and in preparation for future crewed exploration missions and in terms of scientific and societal long-term benefits.