2023-09-02 16:00:02
The Artemis program marks the first step in the new era of human exploration. Together with commercial and international partners like JAXA, NASA hopes to establish a sustainable presence on the Moon to launch missions to Mars. Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) and Toyota also contribute to the program. MHI will do so through the development of the LUPEX – acronym in English for the Lunar Polar Expedition – and Toyota through the joint development of a manned lunar rover with JAXA. With this ‘Lunar Cruiser’, Toyota hopes to apply the perfected technologies used in the extreme conditions of the Moon on Earth.
Toyota and the PF lunar program
The technologies that Toyota is designing for the Lunar Cruiser missions are, among others, the prevention of overturning on the unknown surface of the satellite, navigation with a radio signal, the generation of safe routes to circulate, a steering control intuitive, driving assistance with a superimposed screen and an interior design that conveys a feeling of spaciousness, with capacity for a crew of between two and four members. All the lessons learned will benefit safer driving on all types of terrain, including on Earth. Other possible applications could be the remote and automated exploration of places where catastrophes have occurred or the transport of goods in dangerous areas.
Thus, the lunar vehicle will incorporate a regenerative fuel cell –RFC, Regenerative Fuel Cell– from Toyota to survive lunar nights[2]. Through the electrolysis of water, the system will enable high-efficiency hydrogen production using sunlight for power at night. The vehicle’s tires, developed by the Bridgestone Corporation, will be made of metal, as rubber would be useless in the harsh conditions of the Moon. On the other hand, the satellite surface data that MHI’s LUPEX is expected to collect from its research on the Moon in 2025 will also be used to develop the lunar rover.
Toyota and the PF lunar program
“We may have started with the idea of a vehicle to go around the surface of the Moon, but then we went on to consider, for example, the use of hydrogen as a fuel. If the vehicle has to run on hydrogen, we need water to produce that hydrogen. If the surface of the Moon contains water, we can use it to create a hydrogen-based society, which could lead to the construction of cities,” he explains. Shigeki Terashidirector and executive member of Toyota.
«This idea revolves around the same approach as Woven City; as we’re dealing with so many different aspects along the way, each one seems like a separate project, but I think at its core, it’s always just pieces that are interconnected,” he adds.
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