Astrolab’s Flexible Logistics and Exploration (FLEX) rover is built to enhance Lunar and planetary mobility. In November, 2023, Lunar rover developer Astrolab announced eight customers have signed contracts worth more than $160 million for its first mission to the moon in 2026.
They signed customers to fly payloads on Mission 1, a flight of the company’s Flexible Logistics and Exploration (FLEX) rover slated for as soon as mid-2026. Astrolab announced a contract with SpaceX in March to launch FLEX on that mission on a Starship commercial lander. The FLEX rover has a payload capacity of 1,500 kilograms and a modular system for accommodating a range of payloads.
Astrolab’s FLEX rover unique commercial potential comes from its novel mobility system architecture, which gives it the ability to pick up and deposit modular payloads in support of robotic science, exploration, logistics, site survey/preparation, construction, resource utilization, and other activities critical to a sustained presence on the Moon and beyond. Built with adaptive utility in mind, FLEX can also serve as an unpressurized rover for a crew of two astronauts, in line with NASA’s Lunar Terrain Vehicle (LTV) requirements.
There are also future moon plan renderings from NASA Artemis.
Brian Wang is a Futurist Thought Leader and a popular Science blogger with 1 million readers per month. His blog Nextbigfuture.com is ranked #1 Science News Blog. It covers many disruptive technology and trends including Space, Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, Medicine, Anti-aging Biotechnology, and Nanotechnology.
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Are we sure that Rovers are the way to go from and beyond ‘campsite’ scale? I more envisioned hovercraft (particles not compressed gas), above-lines, and tracks/rails. How are we moving bulky cargo around effectively?