NASA are going Back to the Moon and X-1R Is Rolling There Too

….and X-1R is with them……..

When NASA’s Artemis II mission lifts off, it won’t just be another rocket launch. It will be a statement of intent. For the first time in more than half a century, astronauts will travel back toward the Moon, circling it and returning safely to Earth, paving the way for future lunar landings and, eventually, Mars. Apollo proved it could be done. Artemis is about proving we can still do it, smarter, safer, and more sustainably.

Behind the headlines, the heat shields, and the heroic astronauts, lies a truth that engineers understand better than anyone: spaceflight is as much about what happens on the ground as what happens in orbit. Before the Space Launch System ever ignites, the most powerful rocket ever built must first make a slow, deliberate journey from the Vehicle Assembly Building to the launch pad. That journey is made possible by one of the most extraordinary machines on Earth, the NASA Launch Crawler.

This is where X-1R quietly, but critically, enters the Artemis story.

The Launch Crawler is not glamorous. It doesn’t soar, roar, or glow. It crawls. But it does so while carrying millions of kilograms of rocket, spacecraft, and ambition. Keeping that machine moving reliably under immense load, vibration, and stress demands lubrication that simply cannot fail. Since 1994, X-1R has been trusted by NASA to help ensure that critical moving components perform exactly as intended, every time.

For Artemis II, that trust continues.

X-1R products are part of the maintenance ecosystem that helps the crawler complete its slow procession from assembly shed to launch pad, a journey that may be measured in miles per hour, but carries decades of human aspiration. In spaceflight, there are no “minor” systems. A failure on the ground can scrub a launch just as surely as a failure in space. Reliability isn’t optional; it’s mission-critical.

That is why NASA works with partners who understand extreme conditions, long service intervals, and the unforgiving consequences of friction and wear.  X-1R has spent decades proving itself in exactly those environments, from industrial machinery to motorsport, and yes, to the very infrastructure that sends humans beyond Earth.

Artemis II represents humanity’s return to deep-space exploration. It also represents continuity: the passing of knowledge, experience, and trusted partnerships from one era to the next. X-1R is proud to be part of that lineage.

And when you think about it, the question almost asks itself.  If X-1R is good enough to help keep NASA’s launch crawler moving on the road to the Moon…shouldn’t you be using it in your car?

Because whether you’re moving a moon rocket or commuting to work, friction is friction and performance still matters.