Real world From open rovers to mobile homes
The Apollo Lunar Roving Vehicle was an open, folding electric car. Astronauts had to wear their spacesuits the whole time, so trips lasted only hours.
For longer journeys, space agencies are designing pressurized rovers: closed vehicles with air inside, like small motor homes. In 2024 Japan agreed to provide a pressurized rover for NASA's Artemis program, for astronauts to live and work in for weeks. NASA has also tested a rover concept called the Space Exploration Vehicle.
Possible future How it would work
Inside, two astronauts would drive, sleep and eat in normal clothes. To go outside, they would climb into spacesuits attached to the back of the rover through suitports, keeping dust out of the cabin. Big wheels, strong suspension and a radiation shelter would help on long trips.
Art In this artwork
This illustration shows a chunky white and red rover with big wheels and a front cabin with windows.
Look closer
- Look at the wheels. Why are they so big?
- Find the windows of the driver's cabin.
Think about it
- What would you pack for a two-week rover trip on the Moon?
- Why keep spacesuits outside the cabin?
- What should happen if the rover breaks down far from base?
Key words
- Pressurized
- Holding air at a pressure people can breathe.
- Suitport
- A hatch where a spacesuit is attached to the outside of a vehicle.
- Suspension
- Springs that smooth out bumps.
Sources
The real-world facts on this page are based on these sources:
- NASA, Apollo Lunar Roving Vehicle and the Artemis Lunar Terrain Vehicle
- JAXA and NASA, 2024 agreement for a Japanese pressurized lunar rover for Artemis
- NASA, "Space Exploration Vehicle" concept and tests
- NASA, studies of lunar dust from the Apollo missions
