NASA's lunar test rover VIPER kicks up sand in third mobility assessment

The latest prototype of NASA's Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover (VIPER) manoeuvred high sinkage sand-like material while transiting NASA Glenn's Simulated Lunar Operations Laboratory, or SLOPE bed. This was the third mobility assessment conducted by the test rover to prepare for the 2023 mission to the Moon's South Pole.

The latest test rover, named Moon Gravitation Representative Unit 3 (MGRU3) features the same wheel design and base size as the final rover that will land on the lunar surface. The VIPER team drove the rover over various obstacles and up steep slopes for over two weeks to collect critical data which will help inform the rover operations and science teams on route planning.

NASA said that later this spring, an even more flight-like rover will return to SLOPE for verification and validation testing.

Roll 'em out... on the Moon 🌕Our VIPER rover's latest prototype is getting put to the test at @NASAGlenn, as we get ready to search for ice and other @NASAArtemis resources at the lunar South Pole: https://t.co/J5ADlFE6Vn pic.twitter.com/lgtZLM5z6S

— NASA (@NASA) January 26, 2022

The team also tested one of the rover's wheels over a three-week period by simulating slopes, wheel slips, and even the size, shape, and distribution of rocks the mobile robot will encounter on the Moon. The endurance testing was conducted at the ProtoInnovations lab in Pittsburgh, the robotics company which also designed software controls for the robot's wheels.

VIPER is NASA's first mobile robotic mission to the Moon. The mobile robot will be delivered to the lunar surface on a 100-day mission in late 2023 by Astrobotic's Griffin lander as part of NASA's Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative. It will get a close-up view of the location, concentration of water ice and other potential resources at Moon's South Pole.