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New research from North Carolina State University shows that awind-driven "tumbleweed" Mars rover would be capable of movingacross rocky Martian terrain - findings that could also help theNational Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) design thebest possible vehicle. "There is quite a bit of interest within NASA to pursue thetumbleweed rover design, but one of the questions regarding theconcept is how it might perform on the rocky surface of Mars," saysDr. Andre Mazzoleni, an associate professor of mechanical andaerospace engineering (MAE) at NC State and co-author of a paperdescribing the research. "We set out to address that question." Mazzoleni and Dr. Alexander Hartl, an adjunct professor of MAE atNC State, developed a computer model to determine how varying thediameter and mass of a tumbleweed rover would affect its speed andability to avoid getting stuck in Martian rock fields. Rock fieldsare common on the surface of Mars, which averages one rock persquare meter. "We found that, in general, the larger the diameter, and the lowerthe overall weight, the better the rover performs," Mazzoleni says.In addition, the study found that a tumbleweed rover would need tohave a diameter of at least six meters in order to achieve anacceptable level of performance - meaning the rover could movethrough rock fields without getting stuck. Using the model, the researchers also found that tumbleweed roversare more likely to bounce than roll across the surface, due to thespacing of the rocks and the size of the rovers. "Computer simulations are crucial for designing Mars rovers becausethe only place where you find Martian conditions is on Mars," saysMazzoleni. "Earth-based testing alone cannot establish whether aparticular design will work on Mars." Mars has approximately three-eighths of Earth's gravity. And theatmospheric density on the surface of Mars is only duplicatedaround 100,000 feet above the Earth's surface. Tumbleweed rovers are attractive because they can cover much largerdistances, and handle rougher terrain, than the rovers that havealready been sent to Mars - such as Spirit and Opportunity. "Thismodel is a tool NASA can use to assess the viability of differentdesigns before devoting the time and expense necessary to buildprototypes," Mazzoleni says. While tumbleweed rovers would lack the precise controls of thewheeled rovers, they would also not rely on a power supply formobility - they would be literally blown across the Martianlandscape by the wind. The paper, "Terrain Modeling and Simulation of a Tumbleweed RoverTraversing Martian Rock Fields," is published in the March/Aprilissue of the Journal of Spacecraft and Rockets. Hartl is leadauthor. The research was supported in part by North Carolina SpaceGrant and NASA. I am an expert from ledglobelightbulbs.com, while we provides the quality product, such as Recessed Led Downlights Manufacturer , T8 Led Fluorescent Tubes Manufacturer, Led Candle Light Bulb,and more.
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