Practicing for Safe Landings on the Moon and Beyond

NASA has released an image article showing an Alta-X drone flying the Safe and Precise Landing – Integrated Capabilities Evolution (SPLICE) experiment on Aug. 27, 2026, near NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California.

The SPLICE system was developed by researchers at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. During recent testing, it successfully completed simulated lunar descent and landing maneuvers.

SPLICE’s technologies are intended to provide safe and precise landing for the Moon, Mars, icy worlds, and other destinations by using specialized navigation, guidance, and processing techniques. The capability would enable landings in hard-to-reach and unknown areas that are of high scientific interest. Image credit: NASA/Ryan Kline.