an electric hummer to travel the Moon?

A few days ago, NASA announced that it hoped to be able to launch the first Artemis 1 mission on August 29. The SLS launcher is scheduled to take off from the Cape Canaveral launch pad in Florida to send an Orion probe around the Moon before returning to Earth.

It will be a question of a mission which aims to test the procedures and maneuvers aimed at sending humans around the Moon in 2024, then to land there in 2025. The idea will then be to multiply the missions for establish a sustainable international base on the Moon that would serve as a starting point for other missions to distant space. In sight: Mars, then certain satellites of other distant planets.

These lunar missions are of particular interest to industries and NASA has launched several calls for projects to design lunar vehicles. The car manufacturer GM and the company Lockheed Martin (aeronautics, armaments and aerospace) have thus come together to offer a rover developed jointly.

In order to accelerate development and minimize costs, the chosen base is already known since it is the famous Hummer EV, the 100% electric version of the Hummer formerly used by the US army.

The vehicle was selected for its exceptional crossing capacity and its electric operation. The vehicle should take over the chassis, the battery, as well as the autonomous driving module of the standard vehicle that we already know on Earth.

Adjustments will be made to protect the batteries and electronics of the platform, which will be subjected to temperature differences of more than 260 degrees. The vehicle presented will only offer two seats, but should still offer the possibility of transporting heavy loads. To facilitate their work, the engineers were also inspired by the first lunar rover of 1971 which successfully completed the Apollo missions.

It remains to be seen whether NASA will select the project or whether it will turn to other proposals: other options are in development, including one at Nissan.