NASA’s goal is to land an astronaut on Mars by the late 2030s. But before then, it needs to build a lunar base as a midway point. And to build a lunar base, it needs a landing pad. To build a landing pad, it needs a space architect.

That’s Sam Ximenes, whose San Antonio-based venture Astroport Space Technologies recently won its second small business grant from NASA to continue its joint research with UTSA on how to design robots that can build a landing pad on the moon.

“There’s going to be a space economy, and it’s already in development,” Ximenes said, as companies are attracted to mining prospects. “The lunar surface is the next step toward the ultimate goal to get to Mars.”