Australia is going to the Moon in the form of a semi-autonomous, Australian-made rover. 

Roo-ver, the name of the nation's first lunar rover, will go to the Moon later this decade with NASA as part of a future Artemis mission. 

Two Australian industry consortia – AROSE and ELO2 – are working on early-stage rover concepts as part of Stage One of the Agency's Moon to Mars initiative’s Trailblazer program.

Today, the Australian Space Agency released a video series capturing the pioneering work being undertaken in one of the country's most advanced robotics programs.

Three key themes have emerged during Stage One of Trailblazer - capability, history and teamwork - with the program showcasing the diverse range of talent and industries that are coming together to make history.  

Advancing National Capability

History in the Making

 

First-hand stories from the teams

What's Stage Two of the Trailblazer program?

Stage Two will see one consortium selected to develop the fully realised Roo-ver that will go to the Moon within this decade. 

Roo-ver will be carried to the lunar surface on CT-4 around the end of this decade. Its journey to the Moon will be delivered through NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services initiative.

NASA has entrusted the Australian lunar rover with key research objectives, including to collect new data about the surface of the Moon to support international space science and exploration goals. 

While demonstrating Australian innovations on the Moon, Roo-ver will also be supercharged with an integrated NASA payload – an analysis instrument intended to demonstrate technology for scientific and exploration purposes. 

In time, Roo-ver’s explorations will help global efforts to establish possible sustainable human presence in space.

An illustration of Australia's rover on the moon

Meet Roo-ver

Roo-ver is the name of our history-making rover, but how much do you actually know about it?

Explore

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We Acknowledge First Nations Peoples as the Traditional Custodians and Lore Keepers of the oldest living culture and pay respects to their Elders past and present. We extend that respect to all First Nations Peoples.