Lunar Explorer and Soil Sampling Rover (LESSR)

A team of students from Imperial College Students for the Exploration and Development of Space (ICSEDS) spent the academic year of 2016/2017 working on the preliminary design of a lunar rover, named the Lunar Exploration and Soil Sampling Rover (LESSR). The aim of this rover is to explore treacherous terrain on the southern pole of the moon, where some craters, most famously Shackleton Crater, have not been exposed to sunlight for millions of years. It is speculated, but unconfirmed, that ice water is to be found in the dark regions of these craters. The permanent shadows renders the use of large solar powered rovers to be infeasible. The solution is to have a larger lander with Solar panels placed at the edge of the crater where it can receive power from sunlight and enable communications to Earth. A smaller, mobile, battery powered rover can then collect samples of lunar regolith from the shadowed regions to transport back to a larger base station for analysis. These mission objectives are in accordance with the European Space Agencies’ (ESA) long term goals for lunar exploration and a ‘Lunar Village’.

The project has been continued for a second year, with the aim of competing in the UKSEDS Rover Competition in July of 2018. The team is entirely student led as a collaborating project between ICSEDS and ICRS, as well as the Departments of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering. The project is currently looking for talented and enthusiastic team members that wish to work on an exciting robotic project. Any interested students can email the Project Leader, Morgan Nightingale ([email protected]) for more information. Due to the Technical requirements of the project, 2 nd year students and above will be highly valued, however there is always a place for experienced first year students.