NASA tests SPLICE autonomous landing system on a drone over California lakebed

By the Everything Space news desk · 04 Nov 2026 · written from the sources below

Image: Phys.org

The flight brings NASA's lunar-landing navigation tech closer to use on future robotic and crewed moon missions.

NASA has tested its Safe and Precise Landing—Integrated Capabilities Evolution (SPLICE) system by flying it aboard an Alta-X drone that simulated a lunar descent and landing at Rogers Dry Lake near Edwards, California, on Aug. 27.

The SPLICE payload uses sensors and light-detection data to build detailed maps of the terrain below, letting the system judge whether a planned landing site is safe. If it isn't, the system can redirect the vehicle toward a safer spot.

The drone flight followed earlier tests in June and July that checked communications, data handling and command performance between the payload and the drone, laying groundwork for a larger test planned for later this month at a facility in Mojave, California.

NASA project manager Davis Adams said the test caps nearly a decade of development work and raises the technology's readiness level, positioning it for future robotic and human lunar missions. He added that the guidance and navigation approach could also apply to descents on Earth and Mars.

Several commercial companies building lunar landers have already incorporated earlier versions of SPLICE into their systems to help achieve controlled touchdowns on the moon. NASA plans to make the guidance system available through its software catalog this fall, and some companies are reportedly looking at using its navigation capabilities for precision landings and possible autonomous movement across a planetary surface.

Development of SPLICE has been supported in part by NASA's Flight Opportunities project, which enabled earlier flight tests, including a 2019 trial of descent and landing trajectories resembling a lunar mission profile and a 2020 demonstration of two precision landing sensor systems.

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