NASA recently enlisted the help of three companies, Intuitive Machines, Lunar Outpost, and Venturi Astrolab, to help them create a lunar terrain vehicle (or LTV) to aid astronauts in exploring the Moon as part of the Artemis campaign (a program dedicated to establishing a permanent base on the moon and, eventually, human missions on Mars). Each company underwent a special study to develop a system that meets NASA’s requirements and then demonstrated it by completing a delivery on the Moon. Now, NASA has just awarded Lunar Outpost with the sole contract to build this LTV, with some help from Lockheed Martin, General Motors, Goodyear, and MDA Space.
This electric LTV will be designed to handle extreme conditions on the Moon and give astronauts an easier (and faster) way to explore, move equipment, and collect samples, allowing them to focus on science rather than transportation. Lunar Outpost is also promising that the vehicle will require little maintenance, and be built with a major focus on astronaut safety and comfort.
On top of its ability to easily transport humans, this LTV has the ability to be used remotely, allowing NASA to conduct missions without a crew (or while the crew is resting), and companies like Lunar Outpost to conduct commercial projects/deliveries. Chief exploration scientist in the Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate at NASA, Jacob Bleacher, states, “We will use the LTV to travel to locations we might not otherwise be able to reach on foot, increasing our ability to explore and make new scientific discoveries. With the Artemis crewed missions, and during remote operations when there is not a crew on the surface, we are enabling science and discovery on the Moon year around.”
You can sign up for more updates over at Lunar Outpost’s website, which can also be used to book a payload or help with infrastructure and research projects. Also, if you didn’t already notice, the images seen here are just concepts.
