Best Places to Live: Mars Edition

NASA unveils Mars rover concept that puts humans in the driver’s seat.

Setting up human colonies on Mars has long been the stuff of blockbuster movies, but what about real life?

Apparently, we are another tiny step closer thanks to a new Mars Rover concept being worked on by NASA. The agency is showcasing a new concept rover designed to transport humans across the Red Plant, maybe even serve as the mass transport system for a budding Martian community, according to an article on Futurism.

The chunky, six-wheeled concept rover (it weighs over 2.7 tons) can reach speeds of up to 68 mph and features “life-support systems, navigation and communications systems, and design and materials that relate to conditions and resources on Mars,” the article says. The rover, which also includes a detachable lab, accommodates up to four astronauts and it runs off solar power along with a 700-volt battery.

The new concept rover was unveiled as part of the “Summer of Mars” promotion at the Kennedy Space Center. The next robotic Mars rover is set to land on the planet in 2020. While this concept rover may not the one that makes the trip, it showcases where NASA is going with a next-generation rover design.

Maybe it's no so far fetched to think that Mars could actually be the next frontier.

About the Author

Beth Stackpole, contributing writer | Contributing Editor, Automation World

Beth Stackpole is a veteran journalist covering the intersection of business and technology, from the early days of personal computing to the modern era of digital transformation. As a contributing editor to Automation World, Beth's coverage traverses a range of industries and technologies, including AI/machine learning, analytics, automation hardware and software, cloud, security, edge computing, and supply chain. In addition to her high-tech and business journalism work, Beth writes an array of custom editorial content and thought leadership pieces.

Sponsored Recommendations

Why Go Beyond Traditional HMI/SCADA

Traditional HMI/SCADAs are being reinvented with today's growing dependence on mobile technology. Discover how AVEVA is implementing this software into your everyday devices to...

4 Reasons to move to a subscription model for your HMI/SCADA

Software-as-a-service (SaaS) gives you the technical and financial ability to respond to the changing market and provides efficient control across your entire enterprise—not just...

Is your HMI stuck in the stone age?

What happens when you adopt modern HMI solutions? Learn more about the future of operations control with these six modern HMI must-haves to help you turbocharge operator efficiency...

AVEVA™ System Platform: Smarter, Faster Operations for Enhanced Industrial Performance

AVEVA System Platform (formerly Wonderware) delivers a responsive, modern operations visualization framework designed to enhance performance across all devices with context-aware...