NASA's new
moon rover looks like it's been on TV's "Pimp My Ride."
While the
Apollo-era vehicle that first landed on the moon in 1971 resembled a rickety
dune buggy, NASA's 21st Century rover plans look like a luxury
lunar RV.
There may
be no more open-air lunar drives clad in bulky spacesuits for astronauts.
Instead, future moon travelers can ride in style in an enclosed cabin complete
with sleeping bunks for long rides. Bubble-shaped windows will provide a
panoramic view.
The new
vehicle, currently being designed by NASA as part of its Constellation program
to revisit the moon by 2020, is called the Lunar Electric Rover (LER). It rides
atop a Chariot chassis, which astronauts can also drive separately for use as a
lunar
truck.
"Certainly
it's much more sophisticated, more capable and much more durable," said
Frank Peri, director of NASA's Exploration Technology Development Program at
NASA Langley Research Center in Virginia, comparing the LER to the Apollo
rovers.
While
developing this new souped-up moon buggy, NASA engineers were mindful of some
of the pitfalls of the earlier
Apollo versions.
"We
did our homework and looked back and took that as a starting point," Peri
told SPACE.com. "But we also took a lot of lessons from the Mars
rovers, Spirit and Opportunity."
On Monday,
NASA will celebrate the 40th anniversary of the first
manned moon landing on July 20, 1969. The first moon rover driven by
astronauts, however, did not arrive until the Apollo 15 mission two years
later.
Smooth
ride...on the moon
While the
old rovers did an admirable job of transporting the Apollo astronauts around
for short distances, they didn't exactly do it in style and comfort.
"It
was a pretty rough ride," Peri said. "It was pretty limited in its
suspension and ability to handle rough terrain."
The LER
should be able to navigate the moon's hills and craters with ease, and can even
drive forward, backward and sideways thanks to rotating wheels.
Another
major advance is the pressurized cabin, which is enclosed with air inside so
the astronauts can ride and work comfortably without their bulky suits on.
If the
astronauts do need to venture outside their van, they can easily slip into
space suits attached to suitports at the back of the rover.
"That
changes the whole realm of exploration because you can be in a shirtsleeve
environment and then if you see something interesting you can go out and get in
your suit in about 10 minutes - it's a game changer," said John Olson,
director of NASA's Exploration Systems Mission Directorate Integration Office.
A
Moonbase on wheels
Inside the
LER, comfy chairs easily convert into beds for sleeping, and there are even
bathroom and shower facilities onboard. All these amenities are designed to let
future moon explorers travel abroad for extended periods, even weeks at a time.
In contrast, the Apollo rover sojourns never lasted more than four and a half
hours.
Besides
having more features, the new rovers should be much more durable than past
models.
Where the
old rovers were made for one-time-use (after their batteries ran out they were
done), the new class will have rechargeable lithium ion batteries similar to
those in modern hybrid cars like Toyota's Prius.
"When
we went to the moon for the first time it was really kind of like a camping
trip," Peri said. "We didn't care if things broke so long as we could
make it back. This is going to be a trip to stay."
In fact,
the prototypes being designed now for the moon are also intended to serve as
the basic transportation model for future manned missions to Mars.
Forty
years after astronauts first set foot on the moon, SPACE.com examines what we¹ve
done since and whether America has the right stuff to get back to the moon by
2020 and reach beyond. For exclusive interviews and analysis, visit SPACE.com
daily through July 20, the anniversary of the historic landing.
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