NASA will send a robot to the south pole of the moon to search for ice

NASA announced that A roaming robot capable of searching for ice will land on the moon in 2023 In a region of the south pole of the moon called Nobile Crater.

The US space agency expects the rover to confirm the presence of icy water just below the surface, which It could one day become fuel for rockets on missions to Mars Or in space, AFP reported.

The mission is part of the American Artemis plan to return humans to the moon. Nobile Crater (…) near the South Pole “It was born from a collision with a smaller celestial body,” said Laurie Glaese, director of NASA’s Planetary Science Division.

It is one of the coldest regions in the solar system, which was only remotely explored using sensors from NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter and the Moon’s crater detection and observation satellite. “The rover will be exploring the lunar soil very closely, even digging several feet deep,” Glaese added.

The robot is called Polar Exploration and Volatile Research Rover, or VIPER in English. Its dimensions are the same as a golf cart – 1.5 meters by 1.5 meters by 2.5 meters – somewhat similar to the androids from “Star Wars” and weighs 430 kilograms.

Rover is faster too, a top speed of 0.8 kilometers per hour.

The snakes come with a 50-hour battery that is recharged with solar energyDesigned to withstand extreme temperatures. They can walk while still pointing at the sun and continue to recharge their batteries.

The Viper team wants above all else Find out how ice water first got to the moon, how it has been preserved for billions of years and where did the liquid go.

The first manned mission is set for 2024But Agence France-Presse concluded that the program could be significantly delayed Tellam.