The Surface of the Moon is Electrically Charged, Which Could Allow a Hovering Robot to Explore it - Universe Today universetoday storybywill
. On the Moon, this surface charge is strong enough to levitate moon dust more than 1 meter above the surface. With support from NASA, this research could lead to a new type of robotic exploration vehicle that will help astronauts explore the Moon in the coming years.
at MIT . Along with engineers from NASA, the team investigated how a lunar glider made of Mylar could take advantage of the Moon’s natural surface charge. Their research is summarized in a paper that recently appeared in theMuch like how a MagLev train relies on magnetic induction between the train cars and the tracks to travel at very fast speeds, this Mylar glider naturally holds the same charge as surfaces on airless bodies.
Oliver Jia-Richards, a graduate student at MIT AeroAstro, was the lead author on the study. As he said in a recent MIT News“We think of using this like the Hayabusa missions that were launched by the Japanese space agency. That spacecraft operated around a small asteroid and deployed small rovers to its surface. Similarly, we think a future mission could send out small hovering rovers to explore the surface of the moon and other asteroids.
The vehicle was suspended over an aluminum surface equipped with two springs calibrated to compensate for Earth’s gravity and a tungsten rod to measure how much force the thrusters produced when fired. The entire setup was then placed within a vacuum chamber to simulate an airless environment, and the team applied various voltages to the thrusters to calculate the height the vehicle could achieve.
France Dernières Nouvelles, France Actualités
Similar News:Vous pouvez également lire des articles d'actualité similaires à celui-ci que nous avons collectés auprès d'autres sources d'information.
Peter Bogdanovich, Oscar-nominated director of 'Last Picture Show,' 'Paper Moon,' dies at 82Peter Bogdanovich, the ascot-wearing cinephile and director of 1970s black-and-white classics like 'The Last Picture Show' and 'Paper Moon,' has died.
Lire la suite »
Alexa, Take Me To The Moon! Why Amazon’s Voice Assistant Will Become ‘Callisto’ On NASA’s Upcoming Trip Around The MoonSometime in February or March 2022 NASA will re-ignite its pursuit of crewed landings on the Moon’s surface—and Alexa will be along for the ride.
Lire la suite »
Alexa will tag along on an uncrewed mission to the moonA tech demonstration called Callisto is shaping up to be a 2022 version of 2001: A Space Odyssey’s HAL 9000—hopefully minus the violence.
Lire la suite »
Universal Studios To Resurrect Attack On Titan & Sailor Moon AttractionsUniversal Studios in the West has a number of attractions that dive into the world of fiction, [...]
Lire la suite »