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Updated May 26th, 2021 at 18:06 IST

NASA first mobile robot VIPER to search ice and other vital resources on Moon

"Data received from VIPER has potential to aid our scientists in determining precise locations and concentrations of ice on the Moon," NASA's scientist said.

Reported by: Zaini Majeed
NASA
IMAGE: Twitter/@NASAAmes | Image:self
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NASA on Tuesday announced that it is planning to send its first mobile robot to the Moon in late 2023 that will conduct a search for the presence of ice and other resources on and below the lunar surface. The Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover, or VIPER,  will help the space agency to harvest resources on the lunar South Pole such that it will benefit the long-term human exploration of the celestial body in the future. VIPER will use the headlights in its design to light areas on the moon than haven’t witnessed the sunlight in billions of years and are also the coldest regions in the universe. According to a release published on May 25, NASA plans to send the rover on the moon as a part of its Artemis program. 

“Running on solar power, VIPER will need to quickly maneuver around the extreme swings in light and dark at the lunar South Pole,” NASA explained. It also informed that it has awarded a task order to Astrobotic for the lunar rover VIPER’s launch, transit, and delivery to the moon under the agency’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative. Using its specialized set of wheels and suspension system, VIPER will explore a variety of inclines and soil types. Its advanced and futuristic design will reflect the former robotic concept to prospect the Moon called Resource Prospector. After NASA canceled the project in early 2018, the VIPER mission duration was extended from one to three lunar days, approximately 100 Earth days. 

Director for NASA’s Planetary Science Division at the agency’s Headquarters in Washington,  Lori Glaze said, “The data received from VIPER has the potential to aid our scientists in determining precise locations and concentrations of ice on the Moon and will help us evaluate the environment and potential resources at the lunar south pole in preparation for Artemis astronauts.”

He added, “This is yet another example of how robotic science missions and human exploration go hand in hand, and why both are necessary as we prepare to establish a sustainable presence on the Moon.” 

VIPER to have four instruments

NASA’s VIPER will a total of four instruments to the moon. This includes the Regolith and Ice Drill for Exploring New Terrains (TRIDENT) hammer drill, the Mass Spectrometer Observing Lunar Operations (MSolo) instrument, the Near-Infrared Volatiles Spectrometer System (NIRVSS), and the Neutron Spectrometer System (NSS). All of these instruments will be tested by the scientists on the lunar surface ahead of the VIPER mission. This would mitigate the risk and test instrument performance data, according to NASA. 

“VIPER will be the most capable robot NASA has ever sent to the lunar surface and allow us to explore parts of the Moon we’ve never seen,” said Sarah Noble, program scientist for VIPER at NASA Headquarters. “The rover will teach us about the origin and distribution of water on the Moon and prepare us to harvest resources 240,000 miles from Earth that could be used to safely send astronauts even farther into space, including Mars.”

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Published May 26th, 2021 at 18:06 IST

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