Montreal Space Symposium 2019

The lunar environment is very challenging with extreme temperatures, no atmosphere, and a very abrasive dust that is pervasive.  Composite materials could be a material of choice to lower the mass of the rover, but also provide the right protection to allow survival of the instruments during the lunar night, where temperatures can drop to -200˚C and remain such for the equivalent of two weeks on Earth.

A large multidisciplinary team funded by CREPEC groups professors and students from Polytechnique Montréal, École de technologie supérieure, Université Laval, and the Canadian Space Agency and aims at developing a thermoplastic composite rover that is 3D printed to save on mass, prevent heat loss, and provide dust protection.  The use of space compatible thermoplastic composite material will allow for repair using induction methods.

This talk will present the challenges brought the lunar environment from a material, but also system point of view, the design strategies usually considered and the material options, and finally, the innovations this research group will bring forward.