NASA Wants Public To Develop Obstacle Avoidance Sensor For Its Venus Rover, Announces Cash Rewards

Steven Burnett
Steven Burnett

Updated · Dec 6, 2022

SHARE:

At Market.us Media, we strive to bring you the most accurate and up-to-date information by utilizing a variety of resources, including paid and free sources, primary research, and phone interviews. Learn more.
close
Advertiser Disclosure

At Market.us Media, we strive to bring you the most accurate and up-to-date information by utilizing a variety of resources, including paid and free sources, primary research, and phone interviews. Our data is available to the public free of charge, and we encourage you to use it to inform your personal or business decisions. If you choose to republish our data on your own website, we simply ask that you provide a proper citation or link back to the respective page on Market.us Media. We appreciate your support and look forward to continuing to provide valuable insights for our audience.

The US space agency NASA has sought help from the public to design a rover for its future mission to Venus. It said that the winner will be given a handsome amount for designing an obstacle avoidance sensor. The first runners-up will get USD 10,000 cash prize. The agency will give USD 5,000 to third runners-up. NASA said the public can make their submissions till May 29. Venus is the second planet from the Sun and prior to Earth. Scientists claim both Venus and Earth are basically sibling planets. Venus, however, took a turn in the past and became uninhabitable. Scientists want to send a rover to study the planet and understand what exactly caused divergence.

In the past, many missions made contact with Venus. But they quickly succumbed to the extreme pressure and the oppressive heat in its atmosphere. Venus has excessive sulfuric acid clouds as well. The surface temperature of Venus is around 448 degrees Celsius. This is almost 90 times higher than Earth’s. NASA scientists at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory are working on future mission designs that can survive and explore the planet in its hellish landscape. The Soviet Vega 2 was the last spacecraft that landed on the planet’s surface. The mission was launched in 1985. It, however, stayed there for around 23 to 127 minutes. Its electrical instruments failed due to the hostile environment. Since then, scientists have made little progress.

NASA said it has designed the Automaton Rover for Extreme Environments (AREE) that can survive extreme environments. The agency said AREE will be powered by wind and can stay alive for months on Venus’ surface. The rover will collect valuable scientific data. It said the rover will also meet obstacles in its path like rocks, steep terrain, and crevices. The agency wants the public to develop a sensor to help the rover detect and navigate around obstructions. A sensor generally relies on electronic systems. But NASA said the challenge here is to design a sensor that does not rely on electronic systems because electrical instruments easily succumb due to intense heat on Venus.

SHARE:
Steven Burnett

Steven Burnett

Steven Burnett has over 15 years of experience spanning a wide range of industries and domains. He has a flair for collating statistical data through extensive research practices, and is well-versed in generating industry-specific reports that enables his clients to better comprehend a market’s landscape and aid in making well-informed decisions. His hobbies include playing football and the guitar.