Research Stories

by Nikki Staab

NASA’s Desert RATS are always testing new technology. Every year, they spend two weeks in the Arizona desert at Black Point Lava Flow to do tests in anticipation of future lunar exploration. The RATS are members of the Desert Research and Technology Studies group. The group includes engineers and geologists from several NASA laboratories. This year’s tests included several private and academic partners, including two key members from ASU's School of Earth and Space Exploration.

Team members got a tough workout as part of the recent tests. Two crew members, an astronaut and a geologist, lived for more than 300 hours inside NASA's new lunar wheels, the Lunar Electric Rover (LER). The explorers scouted the area for features of geological interest. They then donned spacesuits and conducted simulated moonwalks to collect samples. The crew also docked to a simulated habitat, drove the rover across difficult terrain, performed a rescue mission, and made a four-day traverse across the rough landscape.

“We are continuously working to meet the challenges of a human outpost on the moon,” says James Rice, faculty research associate in the school and principal investigator of one of the study's geology traverses. “To meet these challenges, scientists and engineers must conduct hands-on field tests and research here on Earth. That prepares us to better understand the complex challenges that will be encountered on the moon.”

Everything gets tested again and again. Researchers test the robotics, vehicles, and habitats. The key is to study them in realistic environments. This helps astronauts, engineers and scientists to define better ways to combine human and robotic efforts that will enhance scientific exploration. The Arizona desert is well suited for testing technologies and procedures for future human-robotic exploration in extreme environments.

“You have to test hardware and concepts in a real-world environment with real geology, slopes, rocks, dust...and the unexpected,” Rice says. “It can't be done in a controlled laboratory. The terrain of Black Point Lava Flow contains challenging topography for LER operations. It also contains lunar and Mars analog geomorphology and geology.”

Rice was in charge of making traverse routes or paths that the rover and crew followed during the simulation. He had to factor in science objectives, rover driving speed, time for the crew to put on and take off spacesuits before and after geology investigations, and the time required to drive to the next station.

“We had a very detailed timeline from Mission Control that we had to work with to make sure we achieved our science goals,” says Rice, who has been involved with the field tests for about six years. “Sometimes we had issues with loss of communications, equipment, or the rover. This caused the whole operation to get behind on the timeline. It was very realistic.”

Kip Hodges is the founding director of the school in ASU's College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and science team member of Desert RATS. He was the principal scientist of the K10 robot, which was developed at NASA's Ames Research Center and deployed prior to the simulated mission to identify areas of interest for the crew. He also served in the science “backroom” for the LER human tests.

“The K10 robot was employed in these tests in order to evaluate the added value of robotic reconnaissance of a planetary landscape prior to sending humans into the field for scientific research,” says Hodges. “While the final field test results are not yet in, I think that my collaborators and I are extremely pleased with the exercise. We look forward to further tests. For example, we are also using K10 for follow-up work after human exploration. In that case, our analogue study site is in a bit farther afield: the high Arctic of Canada. Perhaps we'll also deploy K10 for this purpose next year at the Desert RATS tests.”

New wheels for a new generation of exploration
LER is the next-generation moon rover. It is an all-electric vehicle with 12 wheels. A little bigger than a Humvee, the LER was built for extreme exploration. The frame of this mobile base camp was developed in conjunction with an off-road race truck team, making it able to travel hundreds of kilometers over rugged terrain.

LER’s wheels can move sideways in a “crabbing” motion, one of many features that make it skilled at scrambling over rocks. During the mission, LER was able to climb slopes on the lava flow that the team's SUV chase vehicles couldn't handle. Remarkably, the advanced suspension and drive train of the LER allows it to perform such feats using only 20 horsepower. That is an order of magnitude less than the standard off-road vehicles it left in the dust.

If that isn't enough to make the Apollo-era astronauts envious, LER is also capable of housing two astronauts for up to two weeks with sleeping and sanitary facilities. It is equipped with a time- and space-saving concept called suit ports. The ports are designed to allow astronauts to quickly enter and exit their EVA suits via a rear-entry hatch.

“Apollo astronauts had to drive their lunar rover wearing space suits,” says Rice. “This new manned lunar rover concept has a pressurized environment. That will allow the crew to drive wearing more comfortable clothing and not be stuck in a space suit.”

NASA has not yet confirmed the technologies that will be used in future lunar missions. However, the successful testing of analogue systems and procedures in simulated environments here on Earth moves us one step closer to a sustainable human presence on the moon.

The Desert RATS tests have been held for more than a decade. Engineers from NASA centers work with representatives from industry and academia to determine what will be needed for human exploration of the moon and other destinations in the solar system. It is the culmination of the various individual science and advanced engineering discipline areas' year-long efforts. This year's work built on the investigations of previous years and increased the scope and length of the tests.

For media inquiries, contact Nikki Staab, School of Earth and Space Exploration, 602.710.7169, nstaab@asu.edu