Photo: NASA
Perhaps only second to the Lunar Module itself in icon status, the old Apollo Lunar Rover captured the hearts and minds of people worldwide. There's something about a four-wheeled manned vehicle roving around the surface of another heavenly body that's infinitely appealing.
Well, dear friends, the era of the Lunar Rover 2.0 may finally be at hand. All thanks to an initiative by NASA to develop and manufacture the next generation of Moon vehicles for the follow-up program to Apollo, the Artemis missions. Meet the Lunar Terrain Vehicle (LTV). A design initiative funded by NASA to provide the Artemis Program with the spiritual successor to the Apollo Lunar Roving Vehicle.
Though the Apollo LRV was the product of established companies like General Motors and Boeing, the LTV contract will be an open competition available to a wide array of small and large aerospace contractors. Under its guidelines, a vehicle capable of carrying humans across especially brutal conditions at the Lunar South Pole would have its pros and cons meticulously analyzed. The grand prize is a seat on board NASA launch vehicles for a rendezvous with Lunar Orbit and then a descent onto the surface for the first time in five decades.
"This draft is one of the first important steps in this exciting project that will allow astronauts to explore farther on the Moon than ever before," explained Lara Kearney, manager of the Extravehicular Activity (EVA) and Human Surface Mobility (HSM) Program at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. "Gaining industry feedback is crucial as we move forward in issuing a final request for proposal."
As for the moment, the Artemis III mission to take humans back to the Moon can't move forward until the first two missions return successfully. With the Artemis I SLS rocket still sitting in the VAB, we're about ready to explode with anticipation. Still, we've been waiting half a century. What're a couple more years to us at this point?
Though the Apollo LRV was the product of established companies like General Motors and Boeing, the LTV contract will be an open competition available to a wide array of small and large aerospace contractors. Under its guidelines, a vehicle capable of carrying humans across especially brutal conditions at the Lunar South Pole would have its pros and cons meticulously analyzed. The grand prize is a seat on board NASA launch vehicles for a rendezvous with Lunar Orbit and then a descent onto the surface for the first time in five decades.
"This draft is one of the first important steps in this exciting project that will allow astronauts to explore farther on the Moon than ever before," explained Lara Kearney, manager of the Extravehicular Activity (EVA) and Human Surface Mobility (HSM) Program at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. "Gaining industry feedback is crucial as we move forward in issuing a final request for proposal."
As for the moment, the Artemis III mission to take humans back to the Moon can't move forward until the first two missions return successfully. With the Artemis I SLS rocket still sitting in the VAB, we're about ready to explode with anticipation. Still, we've been waiting half a century. What're a couple more years to us at this point?
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