Mars rover JANUS takes driving lessons on the Moon

For the duration of three days, the ATAPP team (All Terrain Autonomous Planetary Prospector) consisting of students from various German universities and colleges, tested the limits of a rover in the LUNA hall. ATAPP is part of the VaMEx initiative which aims to explore the Valles Marineris on Mars. The JANUS rovers from the University of Bremen serve as precursors for the rovers of a robot swarm, which are to be particularly robust, manoeuvrable and fast in order to gain an initial overview of the kilometer-long trench on Mars. Despite the major differences between Moon and Mars, the test led by the University of Bremen was an important step for the project. For although lunar and Martian regolith are different in many ways, they are similar in terms of their effects on the mechanical properties and behaviour of dust. Once again, LUNA proves its adaptability when it comes to meeting the needs of different users, including the specific desire to simulate “Mars on the Moon”. In this case, for example, the topography of the regolith field was used to test controllability and manoeuvrability on slopes, obstacles and loose surfaces.