&sq=&lang=&file=File:Axel_Moon_Diver.jpg) Axel rover prototype | |
| Mission type | Reconnaissance |
|---|---|
| Operator | NASA |
| Mission duration | one lunar day (≈14 Earth days) |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Spacecraft type | Lander and rover |
| Dimensions | rover: 1.5 m × 0.9 m |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | Proposed: 2025[1] |
| Moon lander | |
| Spacecraft component | Lander |
| Landing site | Mare Tranquillitatis |
| Moon rover | |
| Spacecraft component | Axel |
| Landing site | Tranquillitatis Pit |
Moon Diver is a proposed lunar mission concept by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory that would employ a robotic lander and a – distant coaxial – two-wheeled rover called Axel to investigate the exposed geological layers on the walls of a deep lunar pit.[1][2]
The mission was proposed in mid-2019 to NASA's Discovery Program to compete for funding and development.[3] The finalists were announced in February 2020, and the Moon Diver was not selected.[4]
- ^ a b Cite error: The named reference
Brown March 2019was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Cite error: The named reference
Nesnas_2019was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Nesnas IA, Kerber L, Parness A, Kornfeld R, Sellar G, McGarey P, Brown T, Paton M, Smith M, Johnson A, Heverly M (2 March 2019). "Moon Diver: A Discovery Mission Concept for Understanding the History of Secondary Crusts through the Exploration of a Lunar Mare Pit". 2019 IEEE Aerospace Conference. pp. 1–23. doi:10.1109/AERO.2019.8741788. ISBN 978-1-5386-6854-2. S2CID 195224363.
- ^ "NASA Selects Four Possible Missions to Study the Secrets of the Solar System". NASA. February 13, 2020. Retrieved 1 October 2020.