Boeing, Northrop to Bid Jointly for Pact

Boeing Co., the largest private contractor to the U.S. space program, said it would join Northrop Grumman Corp. in bidding for a contract to develop NASA’s next manned spacecraft, which could carry people to the moon and Mars.

The contract for the so-called crew exploration vehicle will be the largest awarded by NASA in the next five years, worth as much as $5 billion through 2010.