CAR TREK! Nasa’s 2030 Moon cars built to face -240C ‘fortnight of darkness’ to set up permanent lunar base revealed

 PLANNING a road trip on the Moon? There are some space-age motors you'll want to consider.

Nasa is working with three companies to design, build, and test a new Lunar Terrain Vehicle.

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The Lunar Outpost LTV looks like something out of a sci-fi movieCredit: Nasa / Lunar Outpost

This LTV is designed to shuttle astronauts around during the manned Artemis mission to the lunar surface.

And the final model is expected to handle on-Moon transport right through to 2039.

It will be tough enough to handle the "extreme conditions" at the Moon's South Pole, according to Nasa.

On top of that, it will need to be able to drive itself around through the power of artificial intelligence."We will use the LTV to travel to locations we might not otherwise be able to reach on foot," said Jacob Bleacher, chief exploration scientist in the Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate at Nasa.

"Increasing our ability to explore and make new scientific discoveries.

"With the Artemis crewed missions, and during remote operations when there is not a crew on the surface, we are enabling science and discovery on the Moon year around."

Part three of the Artemis mission – which is the first set to see astronauts descend to the Moon's surface – is expected to take place as soon as 2026, though it could be delayed.There are three companies vying to be Nasa's LTV of choice on the Moon for Artemis V in 2030.They are Intuitive Machines, Lunar Outpost, and Venturi Astrolab.

INTUITIVE MACHINES LTV

The Intuitive Machines rover is called RACER, and it's being developed by a partnership that includes Boeing, Michelin, and Northrop Grumman.

It has lunar wheels that can operate at temperatures above 100C and below -240C.

And they promise to "withstand exposure to solar and galactic radiation".

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This Moon Racer looks fast and furious – but promises to be extremely ruggedCredit: Nasa / Intuitive Machines

It looks a bit like a giant go-kart, complete with bright headlights, slick illuminated Moon Racer branding, and what looks like very comfortable padded seating.

LUNAR OUTPOST LTV

Next up is Lunar Outpost's Lunar Dawn LTV, which is described as "an extraordinarily capable off-road robotic transportation system".

It's pitched as being able to carry crew and cargo on the Moon and Mars.

This one looks a bit more like a milk truck, and is being developed in partnership with tyre giant Goodyear.

"The LTV is capable of operating in the most extreme environments continuously," Lunar Outpost explains.

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You'll be able to pack plenty of cargo into the Lunar Outpost LTVCredit: Nasa / Lunar Outpost

NASA ARTEMIS MISSIONS – THE TIMELINE

The Artemis mission is designed to reestablish a human presence on the Moon.

The exploration program will involve a series of missions, including the create of a permanent Moon base.

As with all space missions, planned timings can be wildly off – but here's what we're expecting...

Artemis I (2022) – Successful uncrewed test of the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket.

Artemis II (2025) – Planned crewed test flight of SLS and the Orion spacecraft.

Artemis III (2026) – Crewed landing on surface of Moon – the first American landing since Apollo 17 in 1972.

Artemis IV (2028) – Second crewed lunar landing mission using Orion, as well as Starship HLS that will dock with Lunar Gateway station near the Moon.

Artemis V (2030) – Third crewed landing, including the delivery of Nasa's Lunar Terrain Vehicle.

Artemis VI (2031) – Fourth crewed landing, integrating the Crew and Science Airlock with the Lunar Gateway Space Station.

"With minimal need for maintenance and a focus on Astronaut safety, the LTV will enable the Artemis campaign to thrive furthering critical Science objectives and enabling a sustainable Moon base."

VENTURI ASTROLAB LTV

Third on the list is perhaps the most bizarre – looking less like a car and more like something from Mad Max.

It's the Venturi LTV, and it can be piloted remotely from Earth, by astronauts on the Moon – or even drive itself around using AI.

"We have created much more than a rover for use on the Moon or Mars," Venturi explained.

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The Venturi Astrolab LTV has a high riding position for its astronaut driversCredit: Nasa / Venturi Astrolab

"Our rover is a logistics system capable of handling a wide variety of cargo.

"We believe that this approach will enable a permanent lunar outpost to be established on the Moon at a lower cost and in less time than expected."Venturi says that the vehicle will be able to operate between -240C and 130C, as well as resisting radiation.

And it can also "operate for a fortnight in the darkness of the South Pole of the Moon".

It's around a fifth of the size of the International Space Station, and will orbit the Moon at speeds up to two miles per second.

The 63-ton station will be around 141 x 62 x 67 feet and can house four astronauts.

And it'll be orbiting anywhere from 1,000 miles above the Moon at its closest approach to as far away as 43,500 miles.

It's difficult to say exactly when Nasa will put the Gateway into orbit as space launches don't always go to plan.But Nasa says it'll have a "minimum 15-year lifespan" once it's up there – with the "potential for extension".

Nasa says it'll need at least four rocket launches to get the parts for Gateway into space.

And that process of launching and assembling it in orbit "will take approximately six years".

That might sound like a long time, but it's far less than the 13 years and 42 flights it took to build the ISS.

The first two modules are expected to arrive ahead of the Artemis VI mission.

This is the second crewed lunar landing mission in the Artemis program, expected to take place in 2028.

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Mock-ups of parts of the station have already been created for testing, like this Lunar I-Hab module replicaCredit: Thales Alenia Space

NASA ARTEMIS MISSIONS – THE TIMELINE

The Artemis mission is designed to reestablish a human presence on the Moon.

The exploration program will involve a series of missions, including the create of a permanent Moon base.

As with all space missions, planned timings can be wildly off – but here's what we're expecting...

Artemis I (2022) – Successful uncrewed test of the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket.

Artemis II (2025) – Planned crewed test flight of SLS and the Orion spacecraft.

Artemis III (2026) – Crewed landing on surface of Moon – the first American landing since Apollo 17 in 1972.

Artemis IV (2028) – Second crewed lunar landing mission using Orion, as well as Starship HLS that will dock with Lunar Gateway station near the Moon.

Artemis V (2030) – Third crewed landing, including the delivery of Nasa's Lunar Terrain Vehicle.

Artemis VI (2031) – Fourth crewed landing, integrating the Crew and Science Airlock with the Lunar Gateway Space Station.

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This concept shows what the Lunar I-Hab module will look like from the outside in spaceCredit: Thales Alenia Space

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The Lunar Gateway will feature a Power and Propulsion Element (PPE) – it's a high-power 60-kilowatt solar-electric propulsion spacecraft that can provide comms between the station and EarthCredit: Nasa / Maxar Technologies

Then the Lunar I-Hab will reach the Moon "no earlier than 2028" as part of that mission.

It's during that mission that astronauts will enter the space station for the first time.

And the plan is that astronauts will use the Gateway to descend to the Moon's surface.

"Gateway’s unique polar orbit will provide Artemis astronauts and their spacecraft access to the entire lunar surface," Nasa explains.

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The Lunar View module will allow for cargo storage – but will also feature large windows for views of Earth, the Moon, and spaceCredit: Nasa / ESA

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British astronaut Rosemary Coogan is seen here inspecting the Lunar I-HabCredit: ESA

"Including the critical lunar South Pole region which is the focus of the Artemis missions.

"It will also ensure uninterrupted communications between the Moon and Earth, provide unique scientific opportunities within the deep space environment, and its high stability will enhance operational efficiency and reduce costs."

The Gateway will be made up several different parts.

There's the Lunar I-Hab, which is a living quarters with life-support systems and cameras.

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The Lunar I-Hab will host life-support systems and equipment for scientific researchCredit: ESA

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Nasa is working with other space agencies, such as ESA, to build the habitation modules of the spacecraft that Artemis astronauts will call home

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Astronauts will use the Lunar Gateway as an orbiting base, allowing for transfers down to the Moon's surfaceCredit: ESA

You've also got the Orion spacecraft that shuttles astronauts from Earth to the Gateway and back.

Then there's HALO, which is also a habitation module with life-support systems, fire-detection and suppression, and a moon comms system called Lunar Link.

There's also an area called the Lunar View, which contains fuel tanks but also giant windows for astronauts to capture "stunning images" of the Earth and Moon, according to Nasa.

Nasa is currently testing mock-ups of Gateway modules to see if they work as intended.

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The Lunar I-Hab will be one of the most important parts of the Gateway stationCredit: Thales Alenia Space

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Nasa hopes that the Lunar Gateway will provide support to a Moon base for 15 years – and potentially even longerCredit: Nasa

This included a trial of the Lunar I-Hab module in Turin, Italy in the summer of 2024.

The Moon – our closest neighbour explained

Here's what you need to know...

• The Moon is a natural satellite – a space-faring body that orbits a planet
• It's Earth's only natural satellite, and is the fifth biggest in the Solar System
• The Moon measures 2,158 miles across, roughly 0.27 times the diameter of Earth
• Temperatures on the Moon range from minus 173 degrees Celcius to 260 degrees Celcius
• Experts assumed the Moon was another planet, until Nicolaus Copernicus outlined his theory about our Solar System in 1543
• It was eventually assigned to a "class" after Galileo discovered four moons orbiting Jupiter in 1610
• The Moon is believed to have formed around 4.51billion years ago
• The strength of its gravitational field is about a sixth of Earth's gravity
• Earth and the Moon have "synchronous rotation", which means we always see the same side of the Moon – hence the phrase "dark side of the Moon"
• The Moon's surface is actually dark, but appears bright in the sky due to its reflective ground
• During a solar eclipse, the Moon covers the Sun almost completely. Both objects appear a similar size in the sky because the Sun is both 400 times larger and farther
• The first spacecraft to reach the Moon was in 1959, as part of the Soviet Union's Lunar program
• The first manned orbital mission was Nasa's Apollo 8 in 1968
• And the first manned lunar landing was in 1969, as part of the Apollo 11 mission