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Giant Lunar Surface Test Bed Built On Earth
Astrobotic is building a 100mx100m high-fidelity 3D test field that will mimic the topography and optical properties of the Moon’s surface.
(Astrobotic lunar test bed)
This lunar surface analogue test site called the Lunar Surface Proving Ground (LSPG) will be used for a variety of test campaigns, from precise lunar landing technologies like LiDAR scanners and navigation algorithms to lunar rovers and other robotic systems. In addition to providing a realistic lunar topography for spacecraft and rover sensors and systems, this test field will offer a facility for simulating the extreme lighting conditions encountered at the lunar poles.(Via Astrobotic.)
Fans of the Apollo program may recall something similar was done to prepare for the original moon landing. NASA used exactly the same technique in the 1960's to train the pilots-turned-astronauts who were to land on the moon.
Once the probable landing site in the Sea of Tranquility was selected, NASA geologists went to the volcanic mountain range in Arizona. There, they carefully measured the locations of each crater, and used explosives to create an exact scale model of the landing area.
(Compare the model in the lava field [above]
with the pictures taken from lunar orbit [below]
From The BBC Presents The Planets)
Astronauts first walked the site, then flew over the site at a few hundred feet in a small Cessna. Finally, they overflew the site in a T-38 jet at 25,000 feet to simulate what can be seen from lunar orbit (at matching speed).
Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 8/19/2023)
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