Thales Alenia Space, a joint venture between Thales and Leonardo , on Thursday announced a 862 million euro ($896.9 million) order from the European Space Agency for the development of the Argonaut lunar lander.

Thales Alenia Space signed a contract valued at 862 million euros ($898.4 million) with the European Space Agency to develop a lander to ship cargo to the Moon.

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,

The European Space Agency on Thursday put €862mn behind its goal to be a major player in lunar exploration, awarding a contract to Thales Alenia Space to build its first cargo vehicle for the Moon. Daniel Neuenschwander,