NASA is planning to send the first woman and first person of color to the Moon in just a few years from now. And similar to Apollo astronauts of five decades ago, they’ll be using a moon buggy to navigate through the rocky terrain of the Moon.
Aerospace and defense technology company Northrop Grumman is developing a “Lunar Terrain Vehicle” (LTV) that it wants the space agency to use for its Artemis lunar landings. Details about the specific design of the vehicle are still scarce, hinting it’s still at a nascent stage. However, this week the Virginia-based firm shared an image showing how the buggy would shape up.
Northrop roping in other firms
Northrop says the LTV it plans to develop will be “agile and affordable.” To help it achieve its design goal, the company has roped in four commercial companies: propulsion system specialist AVL, space products manufacturer Intuitive Machines, space tech firm Lunar Outpost, and tire expert Michelin.
Northrop is also working with Apollo astronauts Dr. Harrison “Jack” Schmitt and Charles Duke to use their knowledge gained during their lunar mission back in the 1970s.
“Together with our teammates, we will provide NASA with an agile and affordable vehicle design to greatly enhance human and robotic exploration of the lunar surface to further enable a sustainable human presence on the moon and, ultimately, Mars,” said Northrop executive Steve Krein.
NASA seeking help from private firms
Previously, NASA put out a call requesting LTV designs for US-based firms. The space agency said the lunar rover should be electric-powered and designed to last for a decade so that it can come in handy for several Artemis missions.
For the Artemis missions, NASA is calling upon the expertise of commercial companies such as Northrop to develop and build the required space hardware as part of efforts to cut costs and preparation time. But despite the efforts, the space agency recently admitted that it won’t be able to meet its target of launching the mission in 2024.
NASA cited several reasons for the delay of the mission that will put humans back on the lunar surface. Now, the mission is expected to land on the Moon by 2025 at the earliest.
