Will NASA send a Toyota (and not a Tesla) to the Moon with SpaceX?
Elon Musk's aerospace company could launch Toyota's lunar cruiser on the Moon as part of the contract to carry a lunar rover from NASA's Artemis program
Will NASA fly a Toyota to the Moon via SpaceX rocket?
On November 19, the US space agency awarded SpaceX and Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin additional work under existing contracts to develop landers that will deliver large loads of equipment and infrastructure to the lunar surface as part of the Artemis space exploration program. Moon. With the Artemis campaign, NASA will explore more of the Moon than ever before and prepare for future exploration of Mars.
But, as Auto Evolution reports, SpaceX and Tesla have not been awarded contracts to design and build the rover. So when Elon Musk's SpaceX helps NASA put a vehicle on the Moon, it most likely won't be a Tesla.
In fact, this work has already been carried out by Jaxa (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), the Japanese space agency, which since 2019 has been developing a rover with the Japanese automotive company Toyota called Lunar Cruiser.
All the details.
WHAT HAS NASA ESTABLISHED FOR THE ARTEMIS PROGRAM
As the NASA note explains, the agency is planning at least two delivery missions with large cargoes. The agency has determined that SpaceX's Starship cargo lander will deliver a pressurized rover, currently under development by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), to the lunar surface no earlier than fiscal year 2032 in support of Artemis VII and the subsequent missions for a lifespan of approximately 10 years. The agency expects Blue Origin to deliver a habitat on the lunar surface no earlier than fiscal year 2033.
THE JAXA PROJECT WITH TOYOTA FOR THE VEHICLE DESTINED FOR THE MOON
In March 2019, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency announced that it was working with vehicle manufacturer Toyota to develop the lunar rover of the future, a huge vehicle powered by fuel cells with a maximum range of 10,000 kilometers.
The unpressurized rover is expected to be able to carry two astronauts in suits for up to 30 days as they traverse the area near the lunar South Pole. Additionally, it will have to carry more than 1,000 pounds of cargo to help astronauts explore the lunar surface and conduct experiments.
“Crewed rovers with pressurized cabins are an element that will play an important role in the exploration and full use of the lunar surface,” Jaxa President Hiroshi Yamakawa said in a statement at the time. “Through our joint studies in the future, we would like to capitalize on Toyota's excellent technological capabilities in mobility and look forward to accelerating our technological studies towards the realization of a manned and pressurized rover.”
THE FEATURES OF THE LUNAR CRUISER
Toyota's Lunar Cruiser is designed to tackle the extreme conditions of the Moon. With a hydrogen fuel cell system, the rover can cover vast lunar terrain, withstanding temperatures from -173°C to 120°C.
An enclosed, pressurized rover will allow astronauts to travel further and conduct science in geographically diverse areas, serving as a mobile habitat and laboratory where astronauts can live and work for extended periods of time.
THE AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE USA AND JAPAN LAST APRIL
Finally, just last April 9, NASA and Japan signed an agreement for the lunar rover.
Japan will design, develop and operate a pressurized rover for manned and unmanned exploration on the Moon. For its part, NASA will provide the launch and delivery of the rover to the Moon, as well as two opportunities for Japanese astronauts to travel to the lunar surface.
On that occasion, President Biden and Prime Minister Kishida also announced “a joint goal for a Japanese citizen to be the first non-American astronaut to land on the Moon on a future Artemis mission, assuming significant milestones are achieved.”
“Under the stronger-than-ever partnership, we will lead the initiative together with Jaxa, including the development of the pressurized rover that greatly extends the exploration capability on the lunar surface, to realize the common goal of Japanese and American astronauts to explore the moon together ” Moriyama said.
So SpaceX will most likely not transport a Tesla to the Moon, but a Toyota.
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/spazio-e-difesa/la-nasa-mandera-una-toyota-e-non-una-tesla-sulla-luna-con-spacex/ on Fri, 29 Nov 2024 10:56:21 +0000.