The US space agency, NASA, announced on September 20, 2021, that it intends to send a rover to search for water ice in an area called the Nobile Crater, located near the Moon’s South Pole, in 2023.
Image data reveals the western region of the Nobile volcano and scattered smaller volcanic vents in the Moon’s South Pole. (Source: NASA)
NASA hopes that the VIPER (Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover) rover will find frozen water just below the lunar surface and that one day it can convert this ice layer into rocket fuel to support missions to explore Mars and go even deeper into space.
According to NASA’s Planetary Science Division Director, Lori Glaze, the Nobile Crater is an impact basin near the Moon’s South Pole, formed by a collision between the Moon and a smaller celestial body.
It is one of the coldest regions in the Solar System and has only been remotely explored thus far using sensor equipment such as the instruments on the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) and the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS).
NASA plans for VIPER to traverse the lunar surface, and it may even drill several centimeters into the Moon’s soil.
The VIPER rover, according to NASA, has dimensions of 1.5m x 1.5m x 2.5m and weighs 430 kg. It operates on solar power, can withstand extreme temperatures, and can crabwalk to ensure its solar panels are always oriented towards the Sun to maintain charging capabilities.
Through VIPER, NASA scientists aim to understand how water has frozen on the Moon, how it has been preserved for billions of years, how it escapes the lunar surface, and where it goes. The mission to send VIPER to the Moon is part of the US Artemis program, which aims to return humans to the lunar surface.