CALIFORNIA, iNews.id – NASA plans to send Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover (VIPER) to the Moon in 2023. VIPER will be the first mobile robot assigned to explore the most extreme areas on the Moon’s surface.
VIPER will be the first explorer to feature headlights. According to NASA, VIPER will be the main tool for exploring the dark regions of the Moon, as quoted from Slash Gears, Friday (21/5/2021).
The space agency noted that permanent shadow areas of the Moon’s surface have been hidden from the sun for billions of years, protecting mysteries and resources that humanity is only beginning to explore.
NASA plans to launch a mobile robot towards the end of 2023. Upon arrival, the tiny rover will search for lunar craters using four instruments, including an ice drill, hammer, mass spectrometer and near infrared spectrometer.
VIPER replaced the Resource Prospector that NASA canceled in 2018, and will be better equipped for the job. NASA said it would test early versions of these instruments on the Moon before VIPER to help ensure they would perform as expected.
Editor: Dini Listiyani
