Robotic  Lunar  Exploration  Program  V2          Real-time 3D Dynamic Simulations
This is a real-time 3D simulation of NASA's proposed Robotic Lunar Exploration Program second mission (RLEP2) Lunar surface mission. This simulation was produced for the RLEP2 surface mobility trade studies team during pre-phase A. The team was centered at NASA's Marshall Spaceflight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, with participation from the Applied Physics Lab of Johns Hopkins University, NASA Ames Research Center, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, NASA's Glenn and Langley Research Centers and other outside participants including Red Whittaker of Carnegie Mellon University and the Raytheon company. The goal of DigitalSpace's RLEP2 simulations was to produce a running design analog of the largest (and heaviest) of the three proposed rovers for a 2011-2012 crater exploration mission. The dual goals of this mission were "find the light, touch the ice" with a lander to set down on the Lunar south pole (possibly at the rim of the Shackleton crater) and deploy a rover which would then traverse the crater wall to the crater bottom and perform sampling and drilling to look for evidence of water ice. The discovery of significant amounts of water ice on the moon could lead to its future use for crew and mission consumables providing life sustaining water and feed stock for in-situ fuel manufacturing. In this simulation, we have created a drive-able (by keyboard or joystick) virtual rover which has controls for speed and motor torque, and can be articulated into higher or lower centers of gravity depending on driving hazards and to enable drill placement. Gravity can also be set to Lunar, Terrestrial or zero gravity. We invite you to view the movies and still images showing the simulation in action or you may also download and install the simulation for a first hand experience of this rover design.

Movies of the Simulation

Click on the links below to view movies of the Robotic Lunar Exploration Program V2

Click here for the movie Robotic Lunar Exploration Program V2 Obstacles (or QuickTime version)  Click here for the movie Robotic Lunar Exploration Program V2 Tools (or QuickTime version)

Files for the Simulation

Click here to download the whole package including everything below:

Click here to view the Readme file.

Click here to view the PDF Users Guide.

Click here to download Robotic Lunar Exploration Program V2 Space.

Click here to download the version of DSS for this Space.

Click here to view the Album of still images of the Simulation

Click here to download a zip of the full size photos.