Toyota unveils self-driving minibus concept for moon exploration

With numerous space agencies putting up rovers on Mars and moon, carmaker Toyota too is gearing up to put a self-driving minibus that will transport people to the moon and explore the lunar surface.

The Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) has teamed up with automaker Toyota to build up a pressurized self-driving, solar powered rover that will land on the lunar surface in 2029 and will be able to transport humans as well.

The six-wheeled transporter will be able to carry two humans – or four in an emergency – for a distance of 10,000km through solar power and through Toyota’s fuel cell technology. The rover will be the about the size of two minibuses with 13 square meters of habitable space. Also, the astronauts on the rover will be able to take their suits off inside the vehicle as they explore, reported Engadget.

Video Courtesy: Toyota Motor Corporation

“Fuel cells, which use clean power-generation methods, emit only water, and, because of their high energy density, they can provide a lot of energy, making them especially suited for the project being discussed with JAXA,” said Toyota Executive Vice President Shigeki Terashi.

The announcement is a only the first step of the plan. The firms aim to first ‘accelerate their ongoing joint study of a manned, pressurized rover that employs fuel cell electric vehicle technologies’, wrote Futurism.

“Manned, pressurized rovers will be an important element supporting human lunar exploration, which we envision will take place in the 2030s,” said JAXA Vice President Koichi Wakata. “We aim at launching such a rover into space in 2029.”